If one considers a “normal” work week for knowledge workers to begin at 9:00 a.m. and finish at 5:00 p.m., this would add up to 40 hours per week, including lunch and breaks.

We examined time use by employees who tracked their own time using the innovative TimeCorder device. All of the data is anonymous, so employees felt comfortable in tracking the time they spent on work activities. Across a broad range of industries, our data shows that the average employee works 46.7 hours per week. This means that they work just over an hour per day extra, assuming a base of a 40-hour week.

For this analysis, we looked at people who work more overtime hours than the average . Examining the pattern of activity among 235 employees who work over 50 hours, TimeCorder data shows the average time worked for this subset of workers is 55.5 hours per week. 72% of these hours (or 40 hours per week) are completed during the 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. period. Of the remainder, 19% occur prior to 9:00 a.m. and only 9% occur after 5:00 p.m.

So overtime work occurs more in the morning than in the evening.

An expanded work day shows the same pattern. When the bookends of the day are extended one hour earlier and one hour later, the result is a work day that stretches from 8:00 a.m. in the morning until 6:00 p.m. at night. Among those with high overtime hours, the total time worked during this period now represents 85% of all hours. Earlier in the morning than that, hours worked are equivalent to 10% of the total. Meanwhile later in the evening, overtime hours represent just 5% of the total.

Clearly, when people work long hours, there is a greater tendency to come in early and do their work before the start of the official work day. The chart below show the percent of time spent during each of the 24-hour periods of the day, starting at midnight, the “0” hour.

(On the chart, it appears as if work drop off in the afternoon. This is because some  employees shift their hours by arriving very early in the morning and finish their day by 3:00 p.m. or 4:00 p.m. )

What does this mean for organizations? If they plan to provide snacks to those who work overtime, breakfast items may be more appropriate than dinner items. And if extra meetings need to be scheduled, employees may be more willing to come in early than to stay late. Finally, energy levels may be higher in the morning than at the end of a day when some employees have already worked ten hours or more.

Undestand the hours of work when you are most productive. Your time is worth it!

Time study data collected by Pace Productivity indicates the typical knowledge worker plans his or her day for a total of 2.3 hours per week. Results from sales reps indicates that those who spend more time in planning tend to be more successful. Here is how to plan your day:
• Visualize your long term picture of success and put it in writing. Review your goal frequently. Your goal should be specific, measurable, achievable and compatible with where you are now. There should be an end date as well. Steven Covey calls this “Begin with the end in mind.”
• Write out a To Do list every day. Include items that can be completed, such as “Prepare exhibits for monthly report”, rather than just “Work on report.”
• Separate your To Do list into A, B and C priorities.
• “A” items are important to your long term success (If you had nothing else to do today, these would be the activities that would affect your results one month from now),
• “B” are things you must do today as part of your job description (they may be urgent but not as important)
• “C” are unwritten or unavoidable but necessary (administration, travel, personal)
• “D” are things you could delay, delegate, or delete
• Start with the A items. Don’t work on a C just because it’s easy to do. Also, break your A items into small manageable chunks, so they’re easy to accomplish.

• Check off items as you complete them to give yourself a sense of accomplishment.
• Block off time for major activities. This might include a block of time for working alone on major tasks. If someone wants to meet you during that time, say “I’m sorry, I already have an appointment.”
• Don’t jam your day full of activities. Leave time for emergencies, special opportunities and thinking time.
• Be your own manager. Ask yourself if you have met your goals, and what changes you plan to make to achieve them.
• Do it now. People will often say “Call me next week, and we’ll book an appointment then.” Respond by saying, “Let’s save ourselves a call and do it now.”
• Always plan time for balance; include family, fitness, recreation, social and spiritual activities.
• Conduct a time study to see how you’re doing and where the opportunities for improvement lie. Many people are only able to spend one quarter of their time on top priority activities. Moving this up to one third of the week means almost 4 more hours per week on key activities.