In Your Reams: #9

‘Me’ time

It’s probably been a while since you’ve had this. Or even thought it a possibility.

And we’re not claiming that going paperless will suddenly give you the freedom of time to do all the things you’ve been saying you want to do. It’s just paper, for goodness’ sake.

But if you design it well enough, with the right technology and the right change of mindset, you really can revolutionise your lifestyle.

You can free up more time to spend with family and friends – or, even if you still have work to complete, you can do it with them around. This is a relatively new concept that the younger generations are much more comfortable with. Work from your laptop or tablet at the kitchen bench or in the living room after dinner, if you really need to. Though some may see this as workaholic behaviour, it’s better to be a workaholic in comfort than be stuck under fluorescent office lights until midnight at EOFY.

However, this is where we warn you against the dangers of paperless efficiency: overworking. Technology was designed for the simple purpose of helping us in our work so that we have more time to do the things we want to do – yet how many of you, with the technology you already use, have really made this work for you? Too many eager efficiency seekers use their newfound time to simple work more. Unfortunately, as we’ve all realised at some moment, there’s a point where your efficiency just can’t really go any higher, and the more work you do, the less efficient you become, and the lower the quality of your work becomes.

So the paperless office is designed to give you back your lifestyle – for some, this may mean working fewer hours at the office and spending more time at home, completely switched off. For others, it may mean spreading yourself around further, and working from wherever you happen to be.

Whatever you decide, make sure your paperless office is your servant, not your boss.

Join the #paperless convo with @businessfitness or head to businessfitness.net to find out more.