EFFORTLESS VIGILANCE

Article by Herb Rubenstein
CEO, Herb Rubenstein Consulting

As societies in the developed world depend more and more on information and technologies as sources of wealth they depend less and less on strength and physical endurance to meet the everyday needs of human beings. While this is obvious to many, what is less clear is the impact of this change on the work ethic of the populace.

In the 1950's, economists, sociologists and futurists predicted shorter and shorter work weeks for the U.S. labor force. They were wrong. Surveys of workers by Louis Harris and Associates shows that average work weeks have lengthened steadily since the 1950's. And while many experts predicted technologically driven unemployment would skyrocket, just the opposite has occurred. In April, 1998 the U.S. unemployment rate was 4.3%, the lowest it has been for 28 years. The 4.3% unemployment rate is especially telling since the way the Department of Labor calculates the unemployment rate changed in 1996 in a manner that economists predicted would increase the rate of measured unemployment. Simply put, job creation in the United States has exploded in the 1990's so that far more Americans are working today than ever before.

These new developments, longer work hours and more people working, not only have economic and sociological impacts, they have personal impacts. And as society goes through this adjustment to longer work hours and more people working in the labor force, there must be some “counterbalance” if our workers, our families, our companies and our institutions are not going to experience collective “burn out”. In fact, the Financial Times reported on May 12, 1998 that British Telecommunications is setting up a “national work-life forum” to explore ways of working that produce a better balance between demands of business and employees’ personal lives.

Sociologists in the 1960's wrote regularly about “malaise” as they saw alienation becoming more prevalent throughout our society. People were dropping out, turning on and pursuing alternative life styles. Although the rhetoric has quieted down on this front, the “malaise” sociologists wrote about then may become a bigger problem in the next decade than sociologists predicted back in the 60's.

Today most people are working in the U.S. economy, some trying to get ahead, most trying to keep up or make do. And we do not have a framework or game plan to assist individuals to avoid burning out or becoming discouraged about the fact that most workers are treading water economically. Real wages over the past twenty years in the U.S. have been stagnant at best, and even though average hourly earnings rose by 4.4% in the first quarter of 1998 in the U.S., there is little hope of a significant improvement of fortunes for most workers in the U.S. for the forseeable future.

Policymakers, labor market analysts, employers and employees themselves must begin to address the question, “How can Americans continue to work so many hours and not be exhausted, alienated, and so worn down from work that they do not fully enjoy the real fruits of life -- time with their families, movies, cultural events, sports and athletics, music, reading, social intercourse and plain old ‘good times’.?” This “new” question may call for a new approach to work.

One new approach to work that may address the problem is what I call “Effortless Vigilance.” When I was a construction worker in Shreveport, Louisiana, I often saw men using heavy sledgehammers. The most skilled among them employed such incredible technique and balance that throwing the sledgehammer was almost effortless. (And if you are not sure that is such a magnificent achievement, go to a construction site, pick up a sledgehammer and use it for five minutes, if you can.) “Effortless Vigilance”, which I describe more fully below, can be employed in any line of work, at any time and most importantly, by any employee or manager.

“Vigilance” means “alert or watchful to discovery,” “readiness,” “responsiveness to stimuli,” “cognizant of danger or hazards.” In plain English it means carefully reading and understanding a situation to recognize what needs to be done and employing strategies that achieve a goal and avoid hazards, mistakes and wasted effort.

“Effortless,” in this context, means without undue effort; the avoidance of emotionally, economically or physically wasteful approaches to work. It means far more than “work smarter, not harder.” It means to work in a manner where one is performing a valued task utilizing appropriate skill, preparation, training, and most importantly, an emotionally and physically fit state of mind and body. It means working both creatively and according to a plan or insight or inspiration, using the right tools, employing all of the resources at hand in an efficient manner and reaping the rewards (psychological, monetary, physical and emotional) that should accrue to the individual or group or team responsible for the successful accomplishment of valued work. The question for U.S. workers then becomes a simple, yet profound one -- “At work are you pursuing your tasks with Effortless Vigilance?” If not, one needs to ask the question “What will it take to complete my work today with Effortless Vigilance?” The answer often will not be obvious. In fact, the question itself may spark more than a little protest from someone expending great effort and producing small results or minimal rewards who just can’t see doing the job any other way.

This question, “Are you pursuing your work with Effortless Vigilance,” is like a song--the quality of the answer (the sound) is greatly enhanced if spoken (or sung) in unison with others. Progress toward answering this question in the affirmative will go much faster if the question is asked and answered by many together rather than by a few.

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