Welcome to our weekly newsletter!

26 January 2025

​

Hey friend,

I spent the last week thinking about the cost/benefit of my work. Am I doing too much? Is it costing me too much in other areas of my life? Should I be proud of myself for my efforts or should I be going harder? Do you ever wonder the same thing?

Some Thoughts

How can work make you happy? Well, to make you happy it should do two things. 1. Give you success that you have earned. 2. Include some service to others. When you feel like you getting rewarded on merit, and helping others is part of job, you will feel happier. So next time you are feeling unfulfilled by your work, evaluate it against these two criteria.

What you will learn this week:

👀 The real way to get more done in less time.

⏰ Your actual work hours (do they matter?).

🍄 The downsides of flexibility.

How I Work "So Little” As A Project Manager

A friend recently told me that I have: “the most flexible schedule of any full time employee he has ever seen”. At first I was taken aback. I felt the need to defend myself. To tell him that I actually do work. For many hours. My initial reaction and desire to defend my hours is insightful in its own way and leads to bigger questions about how we view work and status. More about that later. But as I settled in after the initial shock of the statement, I felt more of a sense of pride. Yes, I do have flexibility. Yes I do have time for other things in my life. That was my goal and I’ve achieved it, somewhat.

Why I decided to pursue a flexible work schedule

In 2017 I decided that I was tired of the office. I felt that my productivity was being hindered rather than helped by my constant presence there. I also knew that I was missing out on so much of my life. My time with loved ones was limited and I knew that at the end of my life I didn’t want to look back and feel that I wasted my time staring at cubicle partitions. I knew I was wasting time daily.

...

You might enjoy this:

Postscript

We all have good days and bad days in our careers—ups and downs, setbacks, and moments when things go wrong or people upset us. There are times when it feels like the hard work we’re putting in just isn’t paying off.

In those moments, it’s important to take a step back and ask yourself:What is the larger trajectory of my career?

When you look at the big picture, are you making progress toward your goals?

So, take a moment today to reflect. Are you heading toward your goals? If the answer is yes, keep going.

Until next time,

Jonathan (The Effective Project Manager)

Let me know what you thought of this email - I read every reply.

Share this email with your friends here.

​Unsubscribe · Preferences​