"I could never work 9-5 again," says Powers. "That kind of work seemed like a form of slavery -- giving up your mental, emotional, and intellectual capacities."
Powers slashed his working hours from over 50 a week to just 20, limited to Tuesdays and Wednesdays, with a five-day weekend. His time was split between freelance consulting, writing and speaking jobs.
Two theories were critical to making the new arrangement work. `Parkinson`s Law` - that work expands to fill the time available, and entrepreneur Richard Koch`s `80/20 Principle,` which argues that we achieve 80% of productivity in 20% of our time -- and vice versa.
"I gave myself very short deadlines on everything I needed to do," says Powers. "I thought about what were the most effective things I could be doing and fired other clients. I got rid of superfluous work strands, and though my hours were reduced by 60%, my income went down by only 20%."
Strictly adhering to the new routine -- observing technology fasts and ignoring out-of-hours emails -- recharged the New Yorker`s frazzled psyche as he was able to spend time with his family, get out of the city, and eat well, but also ensured that his reduced working hours were put to good use.
"I would get to my virtual office Tuesday morning refreshed," says Powers. "I would be focusing on tight deadlines and because of 80/20 I would be doing the work that was most interesting to me."
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