“Slow productivity” describes the process of slowing down so your team can focus on vital tasks.
It adheres to three key principles: Do less, work at a natural pace, and obsess over quality.
Newport recommends teams synchronize workloads and structure communication to build slow productivity norms into their workflows.
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The dangers of overwork are well-known. Cognitively overloaded employees are prone to make mistakes and are less efficient in completing tasks. Burnout decreases employees’ motivation and sense of engagement — not just at work but across many aspects of their lives — and the constant rush of stress is hardly great for anyone’s mental and physical health.
Yet, while many managers recognize these dangers, they are simultaneously being tasked with increasing workloads and productivity demands that require them to ask more of their teams. More projects. More emails. More meetings. More objects to meet …
