I was originally booked on Federal News Radio’s “Federal Drive” morning show to discuss how TWEAK IT can help individuals can find a better work-life “balance.”
But, the segment quickly turned into an opportunity to reinforce the link between work flexibility AND the skills and tools people need to capture that flexibility and use it to be their best, on and off the job (which, ultimately, is what TWEAK IT is about).
Below, you will find a link to the lively 13-minute discussion I had with hosts, Tom Temin and Emily Kopp. Some of the key points we covered included:
- Like in any organization, the government’s telework “policy” is not enough to create a successful culture of flexibility that meets the needs of the organization and its people.
- In an environment with more duties and fewer resources, we can’t keep working harder and faster. We have to work and manage our lives smarter and better.
- Telework is not a “program,” it is a way of operating in this “do more with less” environment that requires a partnership between the workplace and the person using it.
- The skill set individuals need to play their role in that flexible work partnership includes the ongoing small, meaningful “tweaks” to manage their everyday work+life fit and the “resets” that involve a more formal flexible work plan.
- Truth is that not every type of job or level supports the same type of work flexibility. Good news is the everyday work+life “fit” how-to in TWEAK IT applies to everyone, regardless of the flexibility your job supports.
- Technology allows more flexibility, but it has also caused us to become more reactive. We need to set better boundaries throughout the day but don’t know how.
- We have to learn how to test expectations. Sometimes we think we have to respond immediately when we get a late night email or when we are on vacation. But that is not the case. Yet we don’t ask.
And there is much, much more. Let me know what you think in the comments section.
And, if you haven’t already, I would love to connect with you on Twitter @caliyost and on Facebook and continue the conversation.