I’ve been reading a lot of books on management and efficiency recently and then Sam threw this one into the mix: “Free! Love Your Work, Love Your Life” by Chris Baréz-Brown.
From the title, you’re expecting it to be all about happiness, breaks and fun, right? Well, it is in a lot of ways, and that may make some managers think that means slow, complacent workers. Having read some other well-reputed books on work lifestyle at the same time, happiness is a common theme. Happiness = efficiency.
Choice
There is an emphasis on the fact that no one made you do the job you have and it’s pretty unlikely it was handed to you on a silver platter. We all made choices to get to where we are. If you love your job, congratulations! You got yourself there. If you don’t like it, don’t blame the world or those around you. Make a change or improve upon the job that you have. The perfect job doesn’t exist, but you can do a lot to be happy in the one that you’ve got, even if it’s stressful at times.
Stress
The book covers tonnes of techniques to de-stress. All jobs have some form of stress, whether it’s from your clients, customers, managers or a piece of machinery. It’s a common theme throughout the book with suggestions for home life changes, walking, stretching, breathing, sleep and diet. I particularly enjoy a good walk to reset in the middle of a busy day. Dare I say, it’s better for my efficiency than a coffee!
Humour and fun
“Play is the highest form of research” – Albert Einstein
This is especially true in our industry. If everyone takes their business too seriously, you can’t escape that uptight energy. We incorporate play by literally playing short card games now and then. We also are not afraid to throw around ideas in our brainstorming sessions. Sometimes the best ideas come when someone is joking around. If we have fun with each other, think of how much stronger the team will be when working on a project together!
I think people can get so caught up in the day to day jobs that they get stressed out or it becomes groundhog day. This book encourages you to shift your thinking and helps you love your job, or at least more aspects of it!
