Life lessons: Why we should strive for a more adult working day

Work, or the "real world" that our parents talked about as we grew up, is a pretty similar process throughout the world. We show up in masses in the morning, sit in our offices or cubicles for eight or more hours, then leave in the evening. From a cultural perspective in the UAE that is how work is defined, and if you do anything else, explaining it to others seems awkward because it doesn't fit into a traditional definition we have of work.

I haven’t had a steady “nine-to-five job” for about a year now and I remember my father coming over for breakfast before Friday prayers and asking me what I had been up to. “I’m just freelancing at the moment, Dad,” I said, awaiting a painful response, and it came. “You’re unemployed son, that’s what you are, unemployed.”

“I love you too, Dad,” I said.

On a serious note though, my parents have always been supportive of my professional decisions. I just think it’s the lack of structure that worries them. For them, work had set times – there was a time to work, rest, get paid, take vacation and then retire. However, I was never good with set times, or at least time at work being used as an indicator of the value it created.

If you believe that every human is unique, that some people are productive in the morning, some in the afternoon and some at night, then why force everyone to be productive in one set period in the day, that is only to the advantage of one or two groups? I believe that set times cater to more industrial-like organisations, but other than being present for meetings and working sessions, I don’t know what purpose it serves other than to take attendance.

Netflix, the entertainment company known for its video-on-demand and streaming media, gives employees control of their time and company resources. They have unlimited vacation and can take expenses without approval if they are deployed in the best interests of the company. Its rationale for treating employees this way is that they “hire fully formed adults” – adults who are responsible and care about the company and their careers in it. Netflix does not measure people by how many hours they work; they care about accomplishing great work period.

Now I am not saying that companies need to start giving employees every freedom they like – just because this culture works for Netflix doesn’t mean it will work for every company. However, there is a lesson to be learnt in that giving employees some form of control over their day and a focus on their efforts made in value creation is a win-win.

Given the changing mentality of the incoming workforce and millennials, there needs to be a middle ground between government and private entities and the workforce. I don’t know what that is, but I do know that young people are starting to increasingly question why “work” is the way it is. The answer might be more flexitime, more flexible and virtual-type workspaces where you can log in anywhere.

In a recent job interview I was asked a classic question: “Tell me about your weaknesses, Khalid.” I replied: “I think my weakness in this environment would be having to sit and work out of one place, the same place, for eight or nine hours a day, every day. I am the type who likes to move around, see things and switch things up”. He said, “Well you will have a hard time fitting in here.”

I remember that earlier in my career, I finished work early for the day and wished I could pick up my son from school, but I knew I had to sit around for another three hours until I could go home. Instead of spending a few hours with my family and returning to work the next day energised and motivated, I sat around until it was time to go home, thinking about what I could have done with that time, wishing I could be treated more like an adult.

Khalid Al Ameri is an Emirati columnist and social commentator. He lives in Abu Dhabi with his wife and two sons.