…am I working too hard?

[KiwiFruitChutney]

Interested in opinions. I decided to track my working hours this week, and I just totted them up and it was 50.5 hours this week. I’m planning to do this every week, as it was interesting to see an actual total.

That’s hours working, in work. When I’m in work, there are no breaks to speak of, in that any non-teaching time (I’m a teacher) is spent working doing emails, admin, planning and resourcing.

I can’t check my phone during the day, and don’t do personal admin at work - this is 50.5 hours of solid working. Previously, in a former job I had in an office, I spent about half the working day on Facebook or reading blogs - in teaching I never even have 5 mins to check my phone.

Basically, I’m interested to hear the following:

• how does this compare to other people’s hours?
• how do other people manage to take breaks in their working day? What do they do during their breaks?
• does anyone actually feel like they have a work life balance? How would you define this? How do you achieve it?!
• does everyone else feel completely exhausted at the end of the working week?

Thanks. Feeling a bit fed up and wondering if there’s more to life than this.

That’s not only a lot of work it’s illegal.
www.citizensadvice.org.uk/work/rights-at-work/basic-rights-and-contracts/rest-breaks-at-work-overview/
You’re entitled to a 20 min break every 6 hours…

I think that those hours are fine, if you are enjoying it. I used to do around 60 hours, 12 hour shifts in care. I've also done a few jobs which have added up to those hours. I've liked it and the team I've been in. My DH worked similar, he was paid well and liked his work colleagues.
You might start to burn out, when you get close, have plans. A relative knew from day one that she wanted to be a Head. On breaks do whatever revitalises you. Have fun on days off.

There is absolutely more to life than work.

At that rate of pace not only will your work suffer, but you'll become ill. Coming from an NHS worker recovering from severe burnout, I know this feeling well. Public services are hard to work in as you feel you have a duty of care, but please remember your employer has a duty of care to you...more importantly YOU have a duty of care to you.

If you dropped down dead today (god forbid) your employer could replace you very fast. Your family/friends couldnt. Work is is not worth your health and its time you wont get back.

I've recently moved jobs within the NHS for the sake of my sanity and I already have a much better work-life balance and I feel like a different person. My old role drove me to some very dark places mentally due to the stress and demands of it.

Work to live. Dont live to work.

I hope you achieve some balance and wish you the best x

I’m probably in a similar position. Work in public service but work from home. This week I’ve worked solidly 8:30-6:30 with the exception of 30 minutes out to do school run. I’ve then worked 9pm -11pm 3 nights once I’ve got my little one to bed. Today I’ve worked 9am until 8pm. I’m now tired and grumpy and still can’t switch off. I know it’s leading me to a dark place which is frightening me but me and all my colleagues feel like we are in the same boat. Find it difficult to catch my breath some days.

@sanbeiji - haha 'illegal'.

It's only unlawful for an employer not to allow an employee to take a break. Just because an individual employee is too busy and important to want to take the break doesn't make it unlawful!

I don't think 50 hours is crazy in a professional job, no. I'm sure many do less and many do more. You'll also find that as you become more experienced planning, marking and resourcing takes less and less time as you have more experience to draw on.

Sounds pretty normal for a professional job.

Excessive I would class as 80h+.

However it is also about how it makes you feel. When I started as an academic, I worked 7d weeks. Now I am in senior management I work fewer hours but they are more productive. I don't dither or take time doing crazy tasks or work arounds like I might once have done. I am much better at prioritising.

Honestly, do you have to do everything you do, in the way you do it?

This: Honestly, do you have to do everything you do, in the way you do it?

There can be perceived glory in saying that you work a lot of hours

If you enjoy it - go for it, who cares how many hours you work…

If you don’t - take control and sort it out

Earlier in my career I likely averaged 50-60 hours per week, and pre Covid did a good 10-15 hours travel on top of my day job

Now it’s tightened up to probably 40-45 which for me I find a good amount

You have to figure out what works for you, who cares how it compares - someone will always be working more than you

This is all really helpful. Thank you, everyone.

@JohnnyMcGrathSaysFuckOff yeah, I’m sure there are other ways I could be doing things. I’ve been in teaching a while now though, so I thought I would have become faster by now. I have taken on some leadership responsibilities recently which have added to my workload, but not exponentially.

It’s sort of like I’ve forgotten who I am though and what I even like doing in my free time. I would like to give myself breaks, but I don’t know what I’d even do with them. Do you stay at your computer? Look at your phone? Go for a walk?!

Also, how do you know when you’re burning out?! If you burn out, can you recover?

It’s really about your mental health: how is that coping? And is this impacting that?

I don’t think it’s abnormal in a professional job, public or private sector. Particular with any seniority.

So many people normalizing working excessive hours. This person is a teacher - they won't be earning big bonuses for those hours.

I'm not a teacher, I work in the nhs. Burnout is becoming frighteningly common in my job. Staff are on their knees and the goodwill has run out with no end in sight. I imagine teachers feel the same.

@KiwiFruitChutney
Burnout isnt nice. Its when you work more hours but you dont actually get more work done, your work ethic and productivity slips, your output isnt up to your usual standard. For me, it made me very irritable and unable to deal with the smallest stress/change. I'd wake up in the night worrying id forgotten something important, I'd dream about work etc. It completely encompassed my life. Horrible.

Some people can work through burnout and develop coping strategies, but for me I didn't want to 'cope' in a job that made me persistently mentally and physically unwell. I got the hell out. Does your establishment have an employee wellbeing service? They can give advice on how to disengage and manage time/stress etc. There are also all the apps out atm to help like Headspace/CALM etc. Dr Chatterjee (a uk based GP specializing in stress management) has a podcast too to help you re-engage with things you enjoy and how to separate work/life.

@Ghostofchristmaspasty

Yep. Dropping like flies :(

I think teachers average around 50-60 a week. That doesn’t make it ok but it’s normal.
It’s about you ultimately- some people will be fine doing this and some won’t.
Can you at least take a lunch break? I find I need ten minutes at least of brain break. Also- extra stress for everyone right now isn’t helping in most jobs.

I work 50 hours a week with no breaks, can't check Phone etc, I'm a support worker working with people with learning disabilities and autism etc on minimum wage. I love my job though. I make sure I have a week's holiday every 10-12 weeks or so, that way I don't burn out and can spend time with my kids etc. I don't find my hours excessive but I'm sure I would if I hated my job though.

Also a teacher, and I decided since starting back in January I was going to cut back a bit. I do less at home now, some nights I don't do anything at all. I take a lunch break, go for a short walk and then eat my lunch.
To be quite honest I feel wildly out of control and mildly hysterical! A couple of weeks of doing this have caused the "to do list" to grow to a point where it's completely unachievable. Next week I am going to miss 2 major deadlines which I will be pulled up quite severely for...I just haven't done the work.
But I've been to evening exercise classes and my house is a little bit tidier. I suspect that will matter not one jot when the shit hits the fan next week

I do 55 hours a week as a full time student and a full time freelancer.

It does feel excessive after a while and I'm looking forward to graduating! Be careful to make the most of any holiday periods, burnout can strike suddenly without much warning.

That actually doesn't sound too bad. I usually work at least 45 hours a week and I might take a 30-60 min lunch a few times a week. I work from home so I might run quick errands or actually eat and watch a little tv.

At my old job I worked at least 50 hours a week. Every 3 months for a whole month I'd work up to 60-70 wk. But I didn't mind as I loved my job and my coworkers. I actually thrived off working those hours and I was rarely tired.

I don't really struggle with work life balance as I don't get out much since the pandemic started. But even in my last job I still had the energy and time to meet up with friends after work (on the days I worked in the office) or on an occasional weekend.

I work for a corporation so if I had a job where I had to stand, and interact with people a lot I probably would be drained by the end of the week. But I sit in front of a computer 8+ hours a day so I rarely feel exhausted at the end of the day.