The Energy Project Europe today releases the results of its survey into the working habits of businesspeople in the UK, to support the launch of the book “The Way We’re Working Isn’t Working” by Tony Schwartz, Jean Gomes and Catherine McCarthy.

The results are simple;
The Way We’re Working Isn’t Working and Multitasking is a Myth

Modern technology dictates that we are NEVER on holiday
- With a staggering 87% of those surveyed admitting to checking emails on holidays and days off
- 55% fail to take their full leave entitlement each year, with one in 20 (5%) missing out on over two weeks’ leave

We’re mobile and email addicts with
- Two-thirds; 66% of us spending just two hours without email whilst 22% only switch off for 30minutes a day!

We waste 2hrs a day on so called multitasking
- Because of the actual lack of focus this style of working necessitates. That’s two hours earlier you could be at home or taking a proper lunch break and over a day a week of unnecessary and unproductive work.
- And that adds up to a staggering 11 weeks a year!

Jean Gomes, Chairman of the Energy Project, comments:  “What this survey confirms is the growing realisation that we're not designed to work like computers.  Whilst many of us have negatively and unconsciously adapted to the notion of 'internet time' - the expectation that we should always be on - we only truly perform at our best when we regularly renew.  It's a myth that top performers are at their best with no sleep, no holidays and no breaks during the day.  They all recognise that they excel only when they balance working and recovery.  What our work says is that we need to turn conventional wisdom on its head.
 
"In our experience, the very top performers across all disciplines employ recovery as the means to achieving the best performance.  The fact that it leads to a happier and more satisfying life all round should be embraced by employers looking to find some positive news in these challenging economic times."

OTHER KEY FINDINGS

Is twitter good for your career?
Only half of those asked were regular users

- of those, 47% admit to being distracted by the service
Work life balance

- 62% don’t have enough time for family and friends

- 54% spend less than two hours a day with family and friends

- Watching TV is the favoured form of relaxation for most, 71%

- 59% take regular exercise. 

- 62% take alcohol to relax

- 79% get between six and eight hours sleep on a weeknight