Read on Twitter
I think it can be easy to have the wrong argument abt this. It's not the hours, it's the rigidity that the problem. We all have work-style preferences (power through or tap-in/tap-out? Strict hours or flexible work week? Early starter or pressure prompted? etc.) 1/X https://twitter.com/saragoldrickrab/status/1305143445007355904
What I see are PIs - people literally geared to imagine things in the world they haven't seen - hit a wall in imagining how people w/ different work styles get work done. So they do 2 things - we all do actually - it's very human and happens to the best of us: 2/X
1) We often set rules/have beliefs based on what feel are 'best practices' but are really arbitrary, usually limited to our personal experience of what we've done/seen. "It took ME 80hrs a week & I worked hard. So YOU can't get it done/shouldn't be able get it done in 40hrs." 3/X
2) We (un)consciously pathologize: "People who work less than 80hrs aren't serious abt the work. They don't understand what it takes to make it in this field, etc." Some managers, unclear on how people management works, set rigid goals: *everyone* should on avg. work 80hrs. 4/X
Folks on the other side of the work style distribution curve do it too: "People who need to work 80hrs aren't efficient. They aren't working all the time. (Though some actually are-happily!)They have no time management skills." Even "they're bragging" (some are, some aren't). 5/X
Both positions are probably a bit of a defense mechanism. "I feel I'm going to be weighed, measured & found wanting." & in some cases, you are, by whoever has evaluatory authority over your work. "So I need to defend my work style." Neither position is particularly inclusive. 6/X
Inclus. managers aren't primarily concerned abt work hours unless paying hrly wages. They are concerned abt setting clear expectations & the output. Work hours are used as checks to assess perform. issues (if it takes more than 4hrs to do this experiment, stop & come see me). 7/X
Managers who say, "It can't be done in less than 60hrs a week," are really saying "I haven't seen it be done in less."
They take their truth as self-evident & universal. Some managers who see perform. issues 1st blame hours: X isn't getting Y done b/c they aren't here 60hrs. 8/X
They take their truth as self-evident & universal. Some managers who see perform. issues 1st blame hours: X isn't getting Y done b/c they aren't here 60hrs. 8/X
For some w/ supervisory responsibility, it's a trust issue. They have concerns-maybe even previous experience-that folks not being around=folks not working. They are concerned they aren't getting value for money. Or are concerned abt absent folks not contributing to lab/org. 9/X
But innclus. managers focus on setting expectations: I need X experiment/data analysis/paper, etc. done by Y date. In my experience, it should take abt 4 hrs/weeks/months. Let's check in at the midpoint/wkly, etc. OR if it takes more than 4hrs come see me -something's wrong. 10/X
They aren't concerned abt folks they can't visibly see=not working, b/c they appreciate that once they've set the outcome expectation, they let go of the close scrutiny of every minute-freeing up their own bandwidth to think abt their work, write a grant, etc. 11/X
If they are concerned abt team collaborations, they assess the need & their teams' needs & aim to set a bandwidth of hours for teams to collaborate - everyone is available for consult b/t 10am-3pm, M,T,W,Th. Note: this is pre-covid. This strategy is modified now. 12/X
They need to know how to hire/how to use the interview to assess for folk who are internally motivatived & can meet stated expectations/goals. Folks they trust are letting problems unfold in the back of their minds even while they are out of sight, doing laundry, buying food.13/X
Anywho, this is all just a gentle reminder that diff. in the how & when people best get work done is another form of diversity. Inclusive practices encourage us to ? our assumptions & not-pathologize folks on the other side of the work style preference distribution curve. 14/X
There are PI/trainees in the lab who can get it ("it" being productivity goals) done in 30hrs a week. Others who work 80. Variables include the project, the person's own work rhythm, preparation, personal needs & current well being, 15/X
How effective the PI is as a manager, how the lab/Instit. is structured/resourced for productivity/wellbeing, the complexity & # of projects, how the PI has set up teaching/training in the lab, who the person's lab mates are, & are those lab mates collegial... 16/X
It's rarely just 'X didn't work 80hrs' that is the cause of failure. It may be a factor, but scratch the surface &all those systemic & individual variables + the lack of an inclusive approach for each person's individual style all contribute to productivity/motivation levels. Fin
