Nick Petrie’s Post

How good are you switching out of work mode at the end of the day so that you can be present and relaxed at home? In our research on burnout and sustainable performance, we found this was one of the biggest challenges knowledge workers faced. In the old days, workers left their tools at work and went home. But for modern knowledge workers, where your main tools are your brain, phone and laptop, you carry these tools home and the boundaries become fuzzy. You are at home with family but your brain is half at work. In the academic literature this is called ‘boundary confusion’. Your brain can’t quite work out whether to be in personal or work mode. We’ve now assessed over 1,000 people on our burnout risk index and the highest scoring item in our measure is ‘I find it hard to switch off from work at the end of the day’. It’s a tough and very common problem. However, about 3 % of workers we assessed were extremely good at switching off in the evenings. We wanted to know how they do it, so we interviewed them. A question for you first – what do you do on your commute home each day (if you still have one)? Nearly all the exemplars we interviewed shared that they intentionally use their commute time to disconnect from their work tasks, emotions and identities (I am a boss, business owner, C.F.O.) and reconnect with personal relationships, activities and identities (I am a mum, dad, spouse, tennis player, gardener). “I think about the people at home and the personal activities I want to do in the evening. I let them fill my mind till they are my main focus.” We noticed that there were three levels of effective transitions. Level 1: Work thinking You spend your entire commute thinking about work, the things you didn’t finish yet and what you have to do tomorrow. Result: you arrive home still in work mode. Level 2: You listen to podcasts or music This is more effective at detaching you from work for a period. That’s good. But it doesn’t reattach you to your personal world. Result: You let go of work temporarily but your mind is ready to reconnect back to work at any time. Level 3: You focus your attention on your personal life You spend your commute thinking about the people, activities and goals you have in your personal life. Your mind attaches to your hobbies, family, projects and friends. This was the most common tactic we heard from people who were great at switching off and recovering. What about people who work from home? The exemplars we interviewed told us they solved the issue by reintroducing a commute back into their day (usually a 30 min walk to start and end the workday). Personally, I have learned to be much more mindful of how I use my commute. I have a 15 min walk to/from my office. It goes fast and I used to waste it. Now I use it to think about the world I am about to enter. It took me some practice but I can feel the change. I am now more present & relaxed at home. How do you use your commute? What works for you?

What is your work/ home boundary strategy? One of the most interesting insights from our research on people who burn out vs those that don’t was how important their work/ home boundary was. People we interviewed who burned often experienced ‘boundary collapse’. Work constantly violated their personal boundaries meaning they couldn’t switch off at home and felt increasingly exhausted. When we interviewed people in big jobs but with very low burnout risk different patterns emerged. Initially, most of the interviewees had very firm boundaries. “I learned during the pandemic that when I work from home, neither my work or home life is very effective. I need a clear split.” “My spouse knows that when I am at home I don’t want to think about or talk about work. There has to be a very clear distinction for me to switch off.” I concluded that the most effective strategy was to be a ‘splitter’ - no work at home, no personal at work. But as the research continued, we interviewed more and more people who were ‘blenders’. They had permeable boundaries between work and home. Based on the many interviews we’ve now done, I’ve concluded that there IS an optimal level of boundary separation between work and home, but it's different for each person. It comes down to three factors. 1)  Personality Preference Some people have a strong need to compartmentalise. When work thoughts or peer's requests encroach into their personal lives, it feels like a violation and they become resentful. For others, in contrast, they like the opportunity to mix and match. “I love the opportunity to go for a run in the middle of the day and then to catch up on work in the evening.” What does your personality prefer? Split, blend, hybrid? 2) Type of Role A client recently advised me, “This group of leaders you’ll be working with will be very receptive to your insights, as long as you don't say something like ‘you must have found firm boundaries between work and home’. That’s impossible in their role.” And he's right. Some of the people we interviewed were in roles where they really had to blend - surgeons and vets who are on-call, global team leads. However, many people's roles don't require them to check email throughout the night. Nobody is dying. It can wait till 8am. Many people could have far clearer boundaries. What's realistic in your role? 3) Stage of Life A lot of people told us that when they had young kids they needed certain boundaries, but now that they are empty nesters it is different. “I no longer need strong lines between work and life. Creative thinking is something I have a lot of energy for, so I enjoy thinking about new and creative work ideas at night.” How does your stage of life influence your boundaries? My takeaway from the interviews was that boundary strategies are like seat belts. You need to adjust them to fit you. But you take a big risk if you choose to use nothing at all.

Do you use a wearable technology to help your wellbeing and performance? Or is your company experimenting with wearables? We'd love to learn from people how they are using wearables and what benefits they experience. The use of this tech seems to be just entering the workplace and we'd like to better understand the possibilities as part of our research into sustainable performance. We are running a webinar for people to come and share their experiences, lessons learned and insights. Questions for discussion: - What do you use? - What do you find most helpful? - How has it changed your behaviors or impacted you? - Any cautions or risks do you see with these? If you are someone who uses wearables and have experienced an impact we'd love you to join and share and learn with others. If you work for a wearables company - Firstbeat, Whoop, Oura etc - we also love to hear from you. Please message me or email admin@nicholaspetrie.com. Webinar - Oct 11, 9am NZ, 2pm PST Register here - https://lnkd.in/gwAPaDiZ Thanks to our research and coaching team working on this project - Vivek Rao, Lisa Mackay, Matt Bartlett-Bond MSc GMBPsS, Jamie Garner, Kelly Walker, Graham Lowe, Karrie Wainscott, Catherine Simin Rousteau, Erin Swartout, Cheryl Bowie (She/Her), Marta Keller, Vanita Smith, Scott D. Finder, Huong Nguyen, Michelle Burns

The most effective performers we studied in our research don't push themselves hard all day - they ‘pulse’. They have a rhythm they've learned to work by which oscillates them between different ‘polarities’. This helps them perform but also seems to keep them fresh. Key polarities we noticed they moved between: Deep work …………………………… Shallow work Offline…………………………………… Online Single task …………………………… Multitask Boundaries……………………………. Open door Rest and recharge…………………. Exertion Concentration time………………… Collaboration time Solo time ………………………………. Group time They were not in a steady state all day. They were bouncing rhythmically and naturally between the poles. And it wasn’t an accident. When we interviewed them we heard that they had learned that this was what worked best. They were intentional. It was designed into their day. In contrast, the people we studied who felt fatigued, frazzled or burned out often felt they were stuck on one end of the spectrum. They couldn’t articulate it but it was clear to us that they didn’t (or couldn’t) pulse. “All I do all day is shallow work. I don't any have time for deep work.” “I'm forced to be online and reactive at all times of the day. I never feel I can go offline.” Some managers might think this is the path to high productivity, but that is not what we saw. It was the path to low engagement, declining energy and high staff turnover. Nature pulses. Tides rise, tides fall We breathe in, we breathe out Our heart contracts, our heart relaxes Humans, to be at their best, need to pulse between the poles throughout the day. But most people in workplaces don’t do this. They are static. That is why so many of us feel fatigued and lethargic. Here are 3 simple things that a team leader can do to help their people pulse (and therefore perform and energise). Online…….Offline - Ask people to turn off all notifications and email for X amount of time per day. Give them permission to go offline. Role model doing this as the leader and tell people you are doing it. Deep Work………..Shallow Work – Ask your team to block in 60 to 90 minutes of deep work each day. Afterwards, they can be available for admin and coordination tasks. But let them know that their Deep Work time is a priority for you. Ask them how it is going each week. Boundaries ………. Availability - Invite your team to share what their work/home boundaries are. They should decide based on personal preferences and life situation. Have the team communicate these to each other and negotiate exceptions where needed. You don't need to choose between the poles e.g. deep work or shallow work. Both are necessary. But you need to find ways to help your people to pulse rhythmically throughout the day. Nature pulses. At their best, so do your people. www.nicholaspetrie.com

I'm now back from a great week in San Francisco running workshops with leaders from Google and Dropbox and facilitating our Leadership Development Incubator at Workday. The first half of the trip was spent with the leaders, looking at their challenges and what they are going to need to lead effectively in a complex environment. Key themes were the need for the right networks, resilience under pressure, and the ability to lead through complexity. I think these have always been important, but with the pace and volume of the modern workplace, they need to be consciously developed. The second half of the trip was in the Incubator with leadership development practitioners from around the U.S., mainly in tech. Carl Sanders-Edwards and I took designers through a process to help them build leading edge leadership programs for their organizations. Some of the final designs were outstanding and are now being tested within the organizations. Thanks to Kristen Hartley, Michael Campbell and Workday for hosting. It was a big success. We'll do it all again in Q1, 2025. Thanks to all the leaders and leadership development folk for the energy and learning together. I'll see you again on the next U.S. trip.

Are you in the leadership development field? If you'd like to keep improving your craft and extend your network, consider joining our Leadership Development Incubator Aug 26-27 in San Francisco. You'll join a community of practitioners from some of the world's best businesses. This year we have many of the world's top tech companies attending. In the Incubator, everyone works on designing a new leadership program for their organisation. You get to choose what you want to design based on your own goals. We will help you bring it to life e.g. an edgy leadership program for our high potentials. You'll learn new cutting edge methodologies and best practices from other companies and you'll end up with a lot of new friends, new ideas and a newly designed program. This is the last week to get the early bird special. If curious, register your interest by applying below. Carl Sanders-Edwards and I are facilitating the event. We'd love to see you there. When: August 26 - 27, 2024 Where: Workday Office in Pleasanton, CA Application link: https://lnkd.in/gSDNJrin More details here: https://lnkd.in/gvBmh4pt

Do you have a phone strategy? This is a conscious plan for how you will use your phone in the evenings and weekends. Most people we interviewed for our burnout vs thriving research had no strategy. This results in them checking their phone constantly. They look at their phone at the family dinner table, check emails while watching tv and scroll social media in bed.   But, when we interviewed people who assessed at very low burnout risk we found they'd all made a conscious choice to drastically reduce phone time.   This was hard won wisdom based on past suffering.   “I used to doom scroll through social media a lot. I just saw how addictive it was and how miserable it would make me feel.”   They all shared that a key ritual was putting their phone out of sight when arriving home. Most put it in their bag and never looked at it at night.   But what about work emergencies? Nearly everyone told colleagues to call them if there was an emergency or anything urgent. They'd answer. But they wouldn't check emails.   “I’m a cog in a larger system. The company is not going to fall over if I don’t respond to an email until tomorrow morning.”   Was this hard to maintain? Yes, at first. But soon they all reported how much better they felt. My favourite story came from a stressed manager, Drew, who wanted to save some money, but discovered something more valuable.   "We went to New Caledonia for a 12-day vacation. I planned to use my phone, but when I saw the data rates I said that there is no way I was going to pay that. I told my wife that I was not going to look at my phone. She laughed and said, “You’ve got no shot.” The first 3 days felt like quitting cigarettes. I’d done that before and all the symptoms were the same. I thought, “My god, I am addicted.” It got easier after the first few days and I lasted the whole 12-days. When I came back I couldn’t believe how much better I felt. So I deleted all my social media and turned off notifications. Until I did this I never realised how much time of my life I was wasting. How did others respond? No one has said a word - I don’t think anyone even noticed. I had heard about mindfulness, but it took me doing this to actually experience it. It re-engaged the creative side of my brain which had gone dormant. I have seen that come back in force What has the impact been? My energy is way higher than it used to be. I used to get to the end of the week and be absolutely drained. I had nothing left in the tank. Now I finish the week with lots of energy. I bounce out of bed on Saturday morning and am on the golf course with friends at 8am. My focus levels have changed. Because I am not looking at stuff all the time, I've stopped wasting mental energy. I now apply that energy to my work tasks and projects. I focus better and get more done. The difference is really quite amazing   This is a key lesson from our research on high performers with stress. They have a phone strategy. What's yours?

Most people in workplaces feel both overloaded AND unproductive. This surprised me when I was interviewed people for our research. I assumed that if people had massive workloads they would feel very productive. But they didn’t. They felt the opposite. The reason is that the ‘ways of working’ in many organizations are inefficient and ineffective: -      Constant interruptions -      Meeting overload -      Multitasking -      Lack of priorities -      A barrage of emails and notifications People feel busy, but they don’t feel productive. Knowledge workers can create massive value when they use their brain to do Deep Work (uninterrupted time, on high value, cognitively demanding work). But most people told me that they don’t do any Deep Work at work. It is all Shallow Work (answering emails, logistical tasks, interruptions, sitting in low value meetings). The conditions they are working in force them into constant shallow work. Shallow work is necessary. But it shouldn’t be 100% of your workday. One CEO we worked with was shocked to hear his people say that the only place they could be productive and do Deep Work was at home in the evenings. "What sort of environment have we created?" he asked his team. Organizations say they want high performance, yet create conditions in which it is almost impossible. Most organizations we studied don't try to improve the conditions for people to perform. They see the problem but view it as too hard to fix. The status quo is the only option. This seems crazy to me. I think all organizations should be asking the question – how can we create the conditions for our people to be less overloaded AND more productive? This is very doable. Last year we started working with companies to see if we could help their people be more productive and less overloaded. We ran low-fi interventions, with very little time invested by them or us. Yet it worked. With very little effort, people started doing more deep work, and felt more productive and less stressed. Based on last year’s results, this year we are taking a more robust approach. We are looking for 15 – 20 companies who would like to experiment with smarter ways to help their people improve performance while lowering stress. Here is a high level of what is involved: -      3+ teams per company -      6-month experience -      Teams run experiments of ‘better ways of working’ -      Team coaching to implement -      Pre and post measurements If your company is interested in experimenting with new and better ways of working and learning alongside other companies that are on the same path let us know. For more info email kitty@nicholaspetrie.com and we’ll send you an FAQ doc with a short video of the process and benefits. I am very excited that Adeption has joined the project as a research partner. They have vast experience in this field and will help elevate this experience further. Momentum is building!

Back-to-back meetings, constant interruptions, multitasking, no space for deep work, overflowing inboxes, checking our phone throughout the evening, meetings in the evenings.   We didn’t create the conditions of the modern workplace. This is just what we inherited from the previous generation.   But we don't have to maintain this way of working. If we don't think it is effective our generation should find better ways that are fit for our modern environment. What if we designed the conditions for people to perform at their best, without burning their brains and bodies out? We are keen to explore how and looking for people and companies to partner with.   Last year, our research team ran experiments with five companies to see if we could help people work in ways that were more conducive to high productivity, with low stress levels. We were surprised at how much the teams could improve with minimal intervention.   Based on last year’s results, this year we would like to take a much deeper dive with a more robust approach. We are looking for 15 – 20 companies who would like to experiment with smarter ways to help their people improve performance while lowering stress.   Here is a high level of what is involved: -      3+ teams per company -      6-month experience -      Teams run experiments of ‘better ways of working’ -      Team coaching to implement -      Pre and post measurements   If your company is interested in experimenting with new and better ways of working and learning alongside other companies are on the same path let us know.   For more info email kitty@nicholaspetrie.com and we’ll send you an FAQ doc with a short video of the process and benefits.

Over the last 3 years, we have been researching how people in organizations can keep working at high levels without becoming overwhelmed or burning out. On July 17, I'll join Jamie Garner to discuss what we've learned in the last 3 years. We'll look at what individuals can do for themselves as well as what organisations can change to create healthier workplace conditions for their people. I'll also share the next phase of our research which will focus on how organisations can create healthier conditions for their people to thrive (rather than burnout). We have opportunities for 15 companies to get involved (big or small). 📅 17 July 2024 ⏰ 08:30 (BST) - London, 3:30pm (EST) - New York 🔗 Register here: https://lnkd.in/g__VyXTu