Waste Time and Resources and Work as Inefficiently as Possible
A cognitive distortion where a person (often a 'Red' personality type) believes that any time not spent on maximum productivity is wasteful, leading to stress and inefficient management.
THE IDEA
Waste Time and Resources and Work as Inefficiently as Possible
Just sitting around doing nothing is a waste of time. Not that this is necessarily what we’re actually doing, but, in the mind of a Red, if you don’t get the maximum productivity out of your time, it’s wasteful and particularly stressful from a managerial perspective. He is probably evaluated on the organization’s efficiency.
When to use it
Evaluating employee performance based on constant activity rather than outcomes.
Setting unrealistic deadlines that force overwork.
Decision-making under time pressure where quality is sacrificed for speed.
FROM THEORY TO EVERYDAY LIFE
In practice
Manager feeling guilty for breaks
A manager who feels guilty for taking a short break to chat with colleagues, believing that every minute must be spent on work tasks.
A MOMENT TO REFLECT
Put it to work.
How does the belief that every moment must be productive affect your decision-making?
Can you identify situations where allowing for inefficiency actually leads to better long-term outcomes?
What would happen if you deliberately wasted time on purpose?
CONTINUE THE CONVERSATION
Source texts
- Surrounded By Idiots (Thomas Erikson)