Re: Working short hours

[Jill Burgchardt <jburgcha -at- PESTILENCE -dot- ITC -dot- NRCS -dot- USDA -dot- GOV>]

Melonie Holliman wrote:

>I used to work 60+ hours a week for too little pay. I kept thinking my
>bosses would appreciate it; they just used my willingness and respected
>me less for not standing up for myself

My comments:

Sounds familiar. I'd encourage anyone in that situation to take a look
at what skills they are using/developing. When I left a similar
situation, I found my skills were out of date. The company never managed
to find any money in their budget when I asked for new or updated tools.

I still work more than 40 hours, because I love technical communication.
But, I've gotten smarter. Unless there's a deadline (exception, not work
as usual) I only work 40 hours for my employer. Extra time I spend
improving my skills, researching new technology, working on personal
projects. My employer gains from my improved skills and so do I.

If you're working extra hours, take a long hard look at the full
picture: compensation, respect, training, tools provided. Are you
treated the same as other employees in each of these areas? Money may be
very hush-hush, so it's often easier to get the true picture looking at
training and tools support.

Even if you are treated as well as your coworkers, is it enough? Do you
have opportunity and time to maintain your skills? You may be putting
yourself at risk if you don't stay up-to-date. What happens if they go
out of business?

There's no magic number of 'right hours' for everyone, but we do need to
evaluate where we are with our eyes open.

Jill Burgchardt

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