Fifteen years ago, a friend and mentor told me about this amazing book he had just read called The 4-Hour Work Week by Timothy Ferriss. My friend’s passion for this book was palpable. He enthusiastically told me he was going to follow the tips and hacks in the book to the extent possible and attempt to adapt his time management techniques and approach to technology. His goal was to work from anywhere in the world seamlessly and know exactly what was going on in the office, with minimal time invested, AND perform his own work so that it produced as good or better outcomes than if he were in the office every day. WOW! I don’t know whether the mind-blown emoji existed back then, but that’s how I felt when I heard this. Of course, that kind of passion is contagious, so I immediately bought the book and quickly devoured it.
The 4-Hour Work Week is a seminal guidebook for anyone striving to liberate themselves from the constraints of the traditional 9-to-5 grind. Ferriss introduces revolutionary concepts such as "lifestyle design" and "mini-retirements," which empower individuals to take control of their time and leverage automation, outsourcing, and smart prioritization. Through a mix of insightful anecdotes and practical advice, Ferriss challenges conventional notions of work and productivity, advocating for efficiency and intentional living as keys to achieving both professional success and a rich, fulfilling life. For me, it was as if kismet suddenly struck, and things would never be the same. I received this message exactly when I needed it most.
After many years of hard work and good fortune, I had reached my goal of attaining what I thought was my ultimate rung on the ladder, only to realize five years later that I was totally burned out and exhausted by the number of hours I was working every week. You see, I came from the old school of “the harder you work and the more hours you put in, the more successful you will be.” But that no longer proved true. I had maxed out in hours input and worked as hard as I could, but I realized this was a marathon that wouldn’t end until retirement, and the pace was simply not sustainable long term.
In the legal profession, this experience is particularly prevalent among those at the owner, partner, and C-suite levels. These professionals often dedicate an extraordinary number of hours each week, extending their workdays into evenings and weekends. Driven by the belief that relentless effort and sheer volume of work are the cornerstones of success, they frequently sacrifice personal time and well-being. However, this intense commitment often leads to severe burnout. Despite their significant sacrifices, they may find themselves disillusioned, with the rewards of their arduous labor feeling insufficient compared to the toll it takes on their mental and physical health.
Fifteen years later, following a global pandemic that required businesses to find a way to make remote work not only possible but productive and profitable, the work-from-anywhere approach posited by Ferriss seems almost prescient. What better way to live one’s life without feeling like the time you spend working is a sacrifice for the life you really want? Imagine remoting into your firm’s dashboard from a resort in Santorini and, within five minutes, spotting the top five critical performance metrics. Now, if that took only five minutes, imagine what you could do with the other 75 minutes each day to make the most impact and still work only four hours a week. Where would you focus your limited time?
Four years after the start of the pandemic, many people have gone back to the office full-time, but largely due to employee demand and “the great resignation,” the number of hybrid work arrangements has greatly increased and still seems preferred by the vast majority of team members. (After all, we proved we could do it, and for some, there’s no putting that genie back in the bottle.)
But what of the managers and team leaders? The firm owners may be working from Santorini, and the team members work from home two or three days a week. However, it seems the managers and team leaders are still tethered to the office every day and enjoy the least amount of flexibility.
The traditional philosophy still seems to require their presence in the office all day, every day. This hardly seems fair. To that end, I’d like to suggest a radical approach so that our managers and leaders may also live their best lives by enjoying some flexibility.
Historically, a manager’s presence in the office serves several purposes, not the least of which is a deterrent to slackers and rule breakers. Basically, a well-paid babysitter. However, a business model that requires leaders to babysit or count keystrokes and inputs is not properly utilizing the skills of their leaders, and from the perspective of the leader, it’s neither challenging nor rewarding. The good news is that there is a better way, and managers, YOU have the power to change it!
Measuring outcomes rather than inputs is the game changer. Instead of trying to manage employee cell phone usage, how much time they spend on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok, paying IT providers to block non-approved sites, or paying for software to measure the amount of time spent logged in, it’s much easier and a better use of your skills to define each role’s key performance indicators and measure their results relative to goals. Once you establish key performance indicators for each job and use reporting tools and dashboards to measure actual performance relative to each goal KPI, you have now moved from measuring inputs to measuring outcomes. (And managers can remote in and also do this from anywhere!)
We all know, it is the outcomes that matter most. Lots of people can look busy at work sitting at their keyboards all day long, but if they’re not moving their cases toward the best resolution, what good is being “busy?” Granted, in a law firm, not all roles are optimally performed remotely, but many team members do handle it quite well. We have found that the best performers in the office are usually the best performers working remotely. Managers don’t need to worry about the number of hours they put in. They get results.
This can become tricky for non-exempt employees who come in late and/or whose attendance is not as strong as others in similar jobs. That, however, is an HR issue and should be addressed individually and swiftly as such. Shifting to a remote or hybrid work model involves significant adjustments for Human Resources departments, which must now navigate a variety of new challenges and opportunities.
For those team members who must or choose to work in the office every day, arriving on time and clocking in and out is still necessary for payroll purposes and HR management. However, the rigidity with which this is enforced is often conflated with concerns such as uniform fairness and equal treatment of team members. Historically, to avoid individual rules for each team member, managers created uniform rules for all non-exempt team members largely based on the number of hours worked per week as well as vague notions of productivity. HR must establish clear communication channels and protocols to maintain team cohesion and morale.
By clearly defining productivity, meaningful outcomes tied to critical firm production goals are much more likely to be attained. Rather than striving for uniformity, we should treat team members as individuals and strive for equitability.
If you’ve read The 4-Hour Work Week, you know that the author adopts some rather radical approaches. Did I apply all the notions to my own life? No, not even close, and no, I haven’t made it to Santorini (yet), but I have applied some broad concepts and urged my clients to do so as well.
Let me be clear: I am NOT recommending that my clients work only four hours a week! Like the author, I realized that working harder wasn’t the answer. It was all about focusing on what moves the needle. In creating a work week that effectively balances productivity and personal well-being, it is essential to consider both individual preferences and the collective needs of the organization. By leveraging modern technologies and fostering a results-oriented culture, firms can empower their employees to take ownership of their schedules. Flexible work arrangements, whether fully remote or hybrid, should be tailored to ensure that both personal and professional aspirations are met. This approach not only enhances job satisfaction and employee morale but also drives long-term success for the organization. With intentional planning and clear communication, crafting your own work week can lead to a healthier and more productive work environment for everyone involved.
At Vista, we have helped hundreds of firms define and measure KPIs for every role in a law firm. We believe in measuring performance by outcomes and know that doing so utilizes the talents and skills of the brightest leaders in the business without requiring them to work harder, just smarter, and in doing so, at least in some small way, I like to think we help them live their best lives!
