The benefits of a “fake commute”
A couple months ago I wrote an article for the Financial Times on the power of routines. Angela Haupt writes in The Washington Post about the invention of
What online and offline chess tournaments can tell us about the impact of lockdowns on cognitive performance
Researchers have been studying the productivity effects of remote work and work from home for years, and generally the results have trended in a positive direction. Stanford
The Atlantic: Making the case for reopening with a 4-day week
In today's Atlantic I have an essay arguing for reopening businesses on a 4-day week. The argument has two parts. First, offices have proved to be a significant
Reason number one million to leave your phone alone during breaks
Nextgov reports on new research comparing the mental efficacy of breaks with and without phones: Using your phone on break during mentally challenging tasks doesn’t allow your brain
New study: Air quality affects chess players’ ability
The Times reports on a new study on the impact of pollution on cognitive performance: Chess players make worse decisions when they breathe dirtier air, suggesting that even
A dissent on the 4-day workweek
Ohio State University professor Allard Dembe has a piece about the potential downsides of a 4-day workweek: I have been studying the health effects of long working hours
Eating together at work and in negotiations
In the interviews I've done with leaders and workers at companies that have implemented shorter workweeks, I often hear-- in the smaller places at least-- that they eat
Long hours, weekends and mental health
This 2018 episode of the Life’s Work podcast has an interesting brief conversation about the impact of working long hours and weekends on mental health? UCL researcher and
Sick days and overwork vs shorter hours
The New York Times has a piece about "The Death of the Sick Day," about how the sick day is disappearing from the office vocabulary, even as we
New studies on physician burnout
The Washington Post has an article on two new studies looking at physician burnout. One looks at burnout among young doctors, while the other underscores how challenging it’s