The “Hours Lever” (and some alternatives)
Many of us, when faced with work that is particularly intense or challenging, “pull the Hours Lever”.
“Pulling the Hours Lever” means that we employ the strategy of working more hours. But I like to imagine it like your brain is an old-fashioned machine room, and you’re “pulling” a literal lever.
A big re-org? Pull the Hours Lever – time for some late nights.
Three big projects to get done by end of month, and two of your direct reports are out on leave? Pull the Hours Lever – time to work weekends.
This strategy is so obvious that you might not even consider it a “strategy.” I mean, that’s what you do when work gets hard, right? It’s just the only option.
But I call it the “Hours Lever” because, well, it’s not the only option.
I call it the “Hours Lever” because, well, there are other levers you can pull.
My favorite one: the “Cognitive Sharpness Lever.”
The Cognitive Sharpness Lever goes something like this:
A big re-org? Pull the Cognitive Sharpness Lever – time to make sure you’re making the smartest possible decisions, on the most important things — and not thinking about anything else.
Three big projects to get done by end of month, and two of your direct reports are out on leave? Pull the Cognitive Sharpness Lever – time to prioritize ruthlessly, make sure each member of your team is working effectively, and use your expertise at the absolute top level.
…
Your brain might be thinking: okay, fine, Cognitive Sharpness Lever sounds good. I’ll just combine that with the Hours Lever.
But here’s the thing: typically, you can’t.
When your brain is tired, it’s typically unable to access maximum cognitive sharpness. In other words, if you’ve already “pulled” the Hours Lever, you may not have access to the Cognitive Sharpness Lever.
In fact, you may need to work fewer hours than you typically do, if you are in a particularly intense or important season at work, in order to even have the option of pulling the Cognitive Sharpness Lever.
Can you imagine? The *blasphemy*!
And yet: two of my clients, in particular, have recently been using the Cognitive Sharpness Lever in exactly this way:
My first client was working through a big layoff and re-org at her company. She was making a lot of important, high-stakes decisions— and responsible for much of the communication + rollout. She ended up reducing her working hours from her average, and prioritizing rest when she’s not working, so she could be maximally sharp for her most important strategic decision-making + action.
My second client manages a large team at a big tech company — and her team was totally inundated with very high profile challenges. Typically, my client would work basically round-the-clock in times like this (e.g., constantly pulling the Hours Lever.) And yet, we’ve been working for her to keep her working hours as close as possible to her “standard” — while increasing opportunities for cognitive sharpness.
How do my clients pull that off?
First: They change their perspective. They open up to the idea that constantly pulling the hours lever might make them unable to pull the Cognitive Sharpness Lever — and that this might make them less effective overall.
And then second: They start to make actual, concrete changes. This typically involves ruthless prioritization, and then step-by-step tweaking of how they spend many parts of their days (are they in email too much? Too many meetings? What time of day is best for their sharpest thinking? Etc.). That second client, in particular, is now radically re-modeling how she spends her workdays.
I will say that it’s often quite helpful to have a thought partner of a coach, as they do this.
…
But if you remember nothing else, please remember this:
The “Hours Lever” is not the only lever you can pull.
But, if you’ve already “pulled” the Hours Lever, you may not have access to the Cognitive Sharpness Lever.
Take care, everyone. I’m rooting for you.
Katie
p.s. The most successful people in the world have coaches — from CEOs to Olympic athletes. Which makes sense; successful people get that way by being open to discovering blind spots, re-examining old beliefs, and trying new things.
Why not you?
If you'd like to work with me 1:1 — learn more here.
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