How many working hours/day are ok?
Darya Antonyuk
95 replies
for you personally :) when do you start feeling that you've lost your productivity and just working for the sake of working?
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Albama Linn@albama_linn
It depends on the person and the job. Some people can be productive for longer hours, while others need more breaks.
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Depends on the person. For me I work anywhere from 10-16 hours a day, 7 days a week. On holidays, too. Hard to take a break when you're just starting up.
@brianhurst Yes, and not only that, but 2 autoimmune conditions, diabetes, and a partridge in a pear tree. I'm perpetually exhausted from those conditions but I can't let those things stop me. I do take time for my health by getting 20 minutes of direct sunlight and 1 hour walk per day, and I cook my own healthy meals about 90% of the time. The other 10% I eat out and let myself enjoy/indulge. I also play my guitar every time I take a break, and watch Netflix while having my dinner. So, there are periods of enjoyment throughout my day, and I listen to Spotify and drink hot beverages using a plugged in mug (to keep my coffee piping hot) while I work. I make it fun.
@darya_antonyuk Caffeine and sheer will
I definitely lose focus after 4 hours of intensive work
@evgenia_budrina1 I can relate, need to take a break or do some dull monotonous work that doesn't require much thinking
Burnout taught me the hard way that there is a limit and looking back on my career, I see too many years pushing myself to be productive way beyond when I could be productive. So now, I try to find a better balance, especially since I also have a chronic health condition to take into account. I like to keep it rather organic so I can adapt my work to my level of energy. If I'm hooked on something and have a ton of energy, I let myself dig deep and hit the 9-hour mark in a day. But mainly I've found that my productivity dips too much if I go beyond 7-8 hours a day. I work all weekdays and weekends, but once a week, I let myself have a lightweight day of only 1-2 hours of work.
Honestly, saying that makes me feel like a bad founder as I constantly hear other founders talk about their 80-hour work weeks. However, life has taught me my limits and this is what works for me. I'm curious whether it's possible to be a founder this way and would love to hear if anyone else has experience with a similar setup.
@maria_hagsten omg, that's such a deep answer, thank you! I think that it's very important that you're trying to find this balance. I wish you the best of luck with your startup!
@maria_hagsten I love the balance you give it.
I once had a burnout that made me take infusions.
Though I still work long hours, I practice pomodoro, and sometimes I take intentional breaks.
@maria_hagsten @judith_amarachi_ pomodoro is a cool method, I used it a lot when I was at uni preparing for the exams
@judith_amarachi_ @darya_antonyuk Love pomodoro too! It is such a simple and effective technique.
8 to 10 hours
@aarav_pittman how do you manage to stay productive over this time?
on a general note,
7*6
8*5 (sweet spot)
10*4
I mostly go with 8*6 or anywhere about that. :)
@senthil99nathan 8 hours 6 days a week is a lot! How do you manage to stay productive over this time?
@darya_antonyuk , maybe, it is. One thing is that I got used to it. And not all those hours are put to full-fledged work. Some of them go into finding inspiration, reading or watching good resources, etc.
@senthil99nathan it's cool then!
It depends, however, the ideal number of working hours per day for maximum productivity is typically around 6 to 8 hours.
@tunc_emran the same for me! (that includes having weekends, right? :D)
It depends on the type of activity and environmental conditions.
@mahsan_sharifian I agree, what are your usual limits?)
I usually work for 7 to 8 hours but when it comes to important tasks, I don't mind investing extra time and I'm even willing to work on holidays to meet deadlines.
@hemalatha_rajendran do you often have to work on weekends?
@darya_antonyuk Not frequently, but sometimes priority work comes up so I need to work on weekends too.
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It varies for individuals.
And there's no fixed time for me.
@judith_amarachi_ of course, it does, for me it also depends on the day and may vary from 5 to 7 hours
This is because our attention spans and productivity tend to decline after about 6 hours of work.
Zero hours (a possibility for some people who are able to live off of passive income or other sources of non-work income)
If you are able to negotiate a shorter workday with your employer, it could have a number of benefits for your health, happiness, and productivity.
Surmount AI
lots & lots :)
workaholic so I don't mind, but I don't expect 12-16 hour days out of my team
@logan_weaver omg, that's a lot :D your team is lucky you don't ask them to do the same :)
Depends, I could probably go a week working 12 hours a day, but that doesn't last long. A break of a couple of days after that streak is necesarry!
@kevin_van_haesendonck yeah, that's a lot of work, I wouldn't last long too π
It all depends on what a project requieres. There's time for work and time to relax. Find the balance!
6 hours 5 days a week
@anna_kasumova that sounds reasonable! do you manage to stay productive the whole time?)
@darya_antonyuk no, first hours I can't focus well, but then it's ok
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Before the launch I work at least 10-12 hours. But in general, 8 - 9 is ok.