As a consultant, productivity improvement is a large part of my work. The intent is to get more accomplished in the same amount of time spent. It is not to drive people to work more hours. It follows the mantra, “Work smarter, not harder”. Life is all about balance. You need to balance work with leisure, business with personal. If you don’t something will go awry. Too much of one without the other causes problems. When you are working you need to get the most out of what you are doing. There are deadlines and sometimes you need to spend a little extra time to get something done and out. That should be the exception, not the rule. I asked for 45 hours a week from my consultants. The rest of the time was theirs. I demanded they take their vacation and do something relaxing. Batteries need recharging. But I also expected great work from them. No goofing off or a poor effort. It was and is, all about balance.