How to Successfully Work a 12+ Hour Day 6-7 Days a Week?

[Blackwinter]

Hi,

I'd like to know what tips you have for someone looking to work a consistent 12 hour day 6-7 days a week.

 

[SteamKing]

Don't plan on doing it for too long. You'll either go crazy or your health will start to suffer, or both. In any event, make sure you are well compensated with salary and benefits, and make sure your life insurance is paid up, so your family is taken care of if the worst comes to pass.

 

[berkeman]

Hi,

I'd like to know what tips you have for someone looking to work a consistent 12 hour day 6-7 days a week.

What kind of work?

In any case, the best advice I can give is to be sure to include a workout in each day. The stress relief is a huge part of being able to work long hours like that. I worked at a startup company for several years where I worked those kind of hours, and luckily there was a workout pool nearby, and a nice trail for running nearby.

 

[Travis_King]

You are looking to work a 70-80 hour week? To what end?

Are you looking to get a job that will have a 40 hour base week plus overtime? Or a job that is salaried and doesn't compensate overtime but requires you to work those hours? What kind of work will it be?

 

[JakeBrodskyPE]

As someone who is on the roster for 24 hour duty calls (we do this one week at a time), I have had 60 to 70 hour weeks on a rare occasion. If it happens more than once a year, I get very grouchy.

If you are looking to do meaningful work, trust me, you can do this better by working a 40 to 45 hour week than you can by sacrificing your health and sanity to your employer. Been there, done that.

 

[jasonRF]

I was essentially forced to average 70 hour weeks for a number of years at work. I never figured out how to make it work - it was pretty miserable. I don't recommend it if you can pay the bills some other way. If you have no choice, then the workout idea is good. Getting enough sleep and making time to spend with friends and family are also important.

jason

 

[ModusPwnd]

Sounds like a typical undergrad paying their own way to me. Work at school for 6-8 hours, go to work for 6-8 hours every day.

I think the best thing to do is avoid drugs (alcohol, caffeine, nicotine and the rest). Forget about having fun and just focus on the task at hand. Regular exercise and healthy eating would be key as well.

 

[Forensics]

I work 50 to 60 hours a week regularly.

The main thing is to make sure you eat well and you get enough sleep. Also, as above, avoid drugs. If you do these things you can adjust to it.

 

[meanrev]

Hi,

I'd like to know what tips you have for someone looking to work a consistent 12 hour day 6-7 days a week.

I work regularly in excess of 12 hours per day, 7 days a week.

The first trick obviously is to find something that you love to do, because that's the only way you can sustain such an effort without burning out.

The next thing that really worked for me is a good diet, and a good way to get food with the least amount of effort. Stocking a personal snack bar works well there, eg cereal, tea, milk, bread, jam etc.

Use a productivity tool like Rescuetime, which helps make the hours you work into a competitive game.

Set a deadline/roadmap, make it very detailed. Task lists need to be detailed and full of little baby steps or it's hard to find motivation to complete anything.

 

[meanrev]

As for supplements, I take B vitamins, sulbultiamine, citocholine, piracetam, acetyl l-carnitine, nothing bad for you, but I think it's more of a placebo effect.

 

[Astronuc]

Hi,

I'd like to know what tips you have for someone looking to work a consistent 12 hour day 6-7 days a week.

It may be more feasible if one is young, but working for 12 hours for long stretches can be grueling - depending on the type of work. One probably should take breaks every four hours, or three or two.

One still needs good quality sleep, and eating and exercise is important as well. Then there's all the other daily chores of living.

 

[Evo]

Hi,

I'd like to know what tips you have for someone looking to work a consistent 12 hour day 6-7 days a week.

What do you mean? Are you looking for a job with that many hours? This does not belong in career guidance.

 

[Monique]

There are people who work less than 12 hours a day? Or people who get paid for 12 hours a day? I must be doing something wrong.

I get paid for 7 hours and have been working 12 h with the last vacation of 3 working days 1.5 years ago. I asked to get some of my vacation hours to be paid out in the form of education opportunities and the answer was "no, you're too expensive as it is". At the same time there is 30K left over on a grant, because I get paid less than what the government expects. So unfair

 

[lisab]

There are people who work less than 12 hours a day? Or people who get paid for 12 hours a day? I must be doing something wrong.

I get paid for 7 hours and have been working 12 h with the last vacation of 3 working days 1.5 years ago. I asked to get some of my vacation hours to be paid out in the form of education opportunities and the answer was "no, you're too expensive as it is". At the same time there is 30K left over on a grant, because I get paid less than what the government expects. So unfair

Holy moly , that sounds horrible! So much for the commonly-held belief that all Europeans get weeks and weeks of vacation each year.

 

[Monique]

So much for the commonly-held belief that all Europeans get weeks and weeks of vacation each year.

I do get a ton of vacation days, on paper. About 4 weeks a year + 1 week that can be kept from the previous year. Then the hours I'm supposed to work, but don't get income for: those are "paid out" in extra vacation hours. I guess that's about 6 weeks: 10 weeks total.

At the end of the year the balance is reset to 1 week, employees are not allowed to do anything else with the vacation balance. I'm not sure how they get away with it.

 

[lendav_rott]

I work ~60-70, as I'm needed, hours a week currently and it took a lot of tears and hate to get used to it. It's of course simple to explain now since I've burned myself out with work too many times that I would finally learn what to do.
Exercise, and on your day off don't "rest" by lying on the couch in a position too difficult to describe watching TV or eating chips or whatever it is. Have to stay active, have to keep moving, the 7 hours of sleep at nights is all the rest you need in the world.
Make sure you eat fish and vegetables. Fish(salmon my favourite) and tomato are very good to have in your diet. Easy way to think about it is, make sure your diet has many colours not just one or two :D

Don't think you won't burn yourself, though, rest assured, you will.

About Euros vacations. It's the law, every employer must guarantee 2 weeks of vacation + bonus time for those with children, every year. Additionally, every employee has the right to take one 2-week-sick-leave a year, of course if the person is sick some other time and can't work then - another sick leave. In fact, people are encouraged to use their sick leave at least once a year.
NOTE that the above applies to contract-based positions. People who work cash-in-hand jobs of course get ripped off HARD even if they are led to believe they don't pay any taxes from their salary and "receive more" than contracted employees.
One quick thing to note aswell, in our country it is illegal to work more than 200 hours a month hence a 70 hour week leaves a little over 1 week of vacation time every month + the annual 2week paid vacation and a sick leave (if needed).

 

[AlephZero]

About Euros vacations ...Additionally, every employee has the right to take one 2-week-sick-leave a year, of course if the person is sick some other time and can't work then - another sick leave. In fact, people are encouraged to use their sick leave at least once a year.

Not in the UK! You need a certificate from a doctor for after than 7 days (including non-working days). After 4 days off sick, your pay can be legally cut to about £90 / week, regardless of your normal salary (though most employers are not that mean).

FWIW the minimum UK holiday entitlement is about 2 weeks of public holidays (Christmas, Easter, etc) on fixed dates, plus another 2 weeks at any time (by agreement with the employer). In practice most employees except new starters get 2 weeks + 4 weeks.

 

[Decimator]

There are people who work less than 12 hours a day? Or people who get paid for 12 hours a day? I must be doing something wrong.

I get paid for 7 hours and have been working 12 h with the last vacation of 3 working days 1.5 years ago. I asked to get some of my vacation hours to be paid out in the form of education opportunities and the answer was "no, you're too expensive as it is". At the same time there is 30K left over on a grant, because I get paid less than what the government expects. So unfair

Well, you obviously won't quit over it, so why shouldn't they?

 

[Evo]

Seems the OP was a post and run. Thread closed.