90-hour workweek: Experts dissect its feasibility, and work-life balance

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Last week, Larsen & Toubro chairman SN Subrahmanyan inadvertently sparked a nationwide math challenge. His alarming proposal that implied a 90-hour workweek with no weekends sent Indians scrambling for their calculators to find out how short they fall of this outrageous benchmark. "I regret I am not able to make you work on Sundays, to be honest. How long can you stare at your wife and how long can a wife stare at her husband?" Subrahmanyan says in an undated video that has since gone viral.

Short agenda-based meetings can help work seem less taxing

While we hope our readers' calculations stopped at a safe distance from the nervous 90s, the Internet minced no words when it erupted with dissent. From Lok Sabha MP Mahua Moitra's reminder that L&T's birthplace Denmark averages a 34-hour workweek, and actor and mental health advocate, Deepika Padukone labelling the comments "shocking", to business tycoon Anand Mahindra's cheeky dig at the latter half of the statement, the debate seems to have just begun.

Mind it

Break time away from the desk is vital during long hours

Not more than 20 minutes," says psychotherapist Binaifer Sahukar. With 32 years of personal and employee wellness work experience under her belt, Sahukar is referring to the human brain's capability to stay focussed on a task at hand. "There is a reason our classes in school and college were restricted to 20 to 30 minutes each," she adds. In comparison to the daunting 90 hours, Sahukar advocates for a 35-hour workweek for optimal work-life balance. "Any template beyond that and you're doing yourself a disservice. Your sleeping patterns, eating habits, relationships and sex life, all take a hit when you work long hours," she warns.

Taking short breaks every 20 minutes can help you focus better

Sahukar also unveils the lesser explored element of guilt. "Sitting at work for 15 hours a day, you will start reeling under the guilt of not giving your loved ones enough time. On the other hand, when you're in their company, you'll still be thinking about work. It's an extremely unpleasant position to find yourself in," she explains, admitting that the prevalent work culture might have a role to play. "The culture of impressing your boss needs to go. Many employees take up such gargantuan tasks only to get noticed by their seniors, without considering their bodily limitations," she adds.

Talk of the boss

SN Subrahmanyan proposes the no weekend schedule in the viral video. PIC COURTESY/INSTAGRAM

Sanjay Shroff, chief business officer, Rent Alpha and Mizuho Leasing, chooses to call these compromises "the premium you pay for success". He explains, "Working 90 hours a week might not be for everyone, but the ones who can, will find a way to do it. Passion, in this case, is the most important prerequisite. An average employee may rise up the ranks at their own pace with a 50-hour workweek. But if his/her colleague wishes to cover the same ground faster by putting in the extra hours, there should be nothing holding them back."

Binaifer Sahukar

Shroff acknowledges the limitations of Subrahmanyan's proposal. "Imposing a blanket rule makes little sense. After all, not everyone carries the same passion. Every individual cannot and need not be the crème de la crème in their field. There are business tycoons, surgeons, and lawyers who continue to put their head down and push through long hours because they love what they do. And if they can do it, there is no question of efficiency or whether it is humanly possible to work these long hours," he reasons, adding that short breaks while clocking in these hours can be helpful.

Counter-productive?

While some might agree with Shroff's formula for success, corporate trainer and career coach Rhea Punjabi is not one of them. "Research has shown that if you work eight hours a day, you are only productive for a cumulative two hours. Anything beyond that is pointless," she says. Such rules might also turn employees hostile towards their own workplace, she cautions. "Appreciation for any extra work you put in is essential. When the bar is set so high, and overworking becomes the norm, employees find no incentive to continue working," she reveals.

Sanjay Shroff and Rhea Punjabi

Before looking at the clock, Punjabi suggests healthier checks to ensure an employee's productivity, especially in fields like media and creative arts where results are not quantifiable.

>> Does the employee have a clear understanding of the problem statement of the project you are working on?

>> Does the employee take the initiative to mentor his juniors and delegate work?

>> Is the employee causing friction in the team that is subsequently slowing work down?

"Time is an outdated marker of productivity. Back in the day, work was way more interactive. You would step out, talk to people, and be on the move to get work done. The concept of screen time and digital burnout were non-existent," Punjabi reasons.

Everything said and done, you might still want to dip your toes in the 90-hour concept to see what all the fuss is about. For the adventurous kind, and teams who might want to adopt the schedule for short periods, Punjabi suggests a checklist.

>> Eliminate meetings. Cap them at two a day with clear agendas.

>> Incorporate short healthy breaks to give your senses a break.

>> Make the workplace cosier by playing soft music or games between periods of work.

>> Ensure that the employees have access to a spacious walking and dining area to cut off from the desktops or laptops.

Happy at work?

While more than one factor contributes to the happiness ranking of countries, here's a quick look at the top three countries with their average work hours in comparison with India.