10 Things Bosses Should Stop Asking Their Employees to Do

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Team-building events don't improve camaraderie. We all love those, "not mandatory but yes, mandatory" social events companies setup. They're a blast, and if you don't enjoy them then there's something wrong with you. Well, it turns out social events such as holiday parties and team-building retreats don't actually encourage communication and camaraderie among most of the employees that attend—which negates their purpose. Employees either find the ordeal itself a waste of time, or socializing in these environments causes co-workers to dislike one another (race seems to play a big role.) So should we resort to hiding in our cubicles? That's my solution, but studies show that what employees want instead is for managers to create better work environments first, and the rest will fall into place. Or, just have less events altogether and leave workers to their own devices.

Constantly checking our email raises our heart rate. Ever step out of the office for a few hours and suffer from anxiety when you weren't able to check your work email? Yeah, we all feel it, and it's not healthy. We shouldn't be attached to our phones just in case that important e-mail comes through, but companies have come to expect that from its employees. New studies show that addiction to checking our email constantly actually puts us in a "steady high heart rate state." It may not be life threatening, but our bodies shouldn't be in a state of endless stress. So what happens when we don't check our work email all the time? NOTHING. Some researchers forced hard-working employees to stop the nasty habit of checking their email entirely for five workdays, and these employees found that it was "liberating" and "peaceful" not to be chained to the immediate back-and-forth of their inbox. When they finally returned to work, they found it easy to determine which e-mails were important and catch up accordingly. Take note (insert your employer name here.)

Email makes us anti-social. As technology continues to advance, so does our need to constantly search the Internet for the next big meme. We don't have time to interact with actual human beings. That's what today's professional culture perpetuates as well. Bosses have their employees believe the best way to get anything done is to just send an email. Actually, this practice has led to less one-on-one time with our fellow co-workers, and in turn, it is making us all anti-social. Studies claim we're becoming inept at picking up on the social cues that help build trust with our co-workers, thus creating tough social environments. Yikes. So is the answer to stop using email? Some people think so, which is why a few companies like Western Mortgage and Atos are banning email altogether. Generally employers need to focus on the work environment itself, and encourage its workers to settle things in person by talking things out.

Annual performance reviews have been a staple of work environments. They're used to determine if an employee is eligible for a raise and a higher position, or if some staff changes need to be considered. But it can't be that cut and dry: annual performance reviews actually decrease performance since most of us are programmed to become defensive when we hear criticism, even if it's constructive. The answer isn't to never fire someone. Focus groups that provide current and live feedback on what works and doesn't work on a specific project can be more helpful in improving overall performance within the company. Even gamifying the feedback process is a good alternative. And no, that doesn't mean Battlefield tournaments to see who gets an office space.

Meetings are a black hole for productivity. It's just an hour of breathing the same air with people you'd prefer to stay away from, but they're unavoidable. Yet meetings can be improved. Companies need to focus less on creating more meeting space and start making meetings more of a chore. Stay with me here. When you sit down in a meeting, you get comfortable: you're probably on your laptop so you're not paying attention to the speaker (so they'll likely repeat themselves since you didn't hear them the first time) and the chair is alleviating any stress placed on your body. If companies start forcing stand up meetings, suddenly everyone will want to be quick and to the point—no distractions. It works. It may mean the meetings are more annoying to attend, but there will be less of them.

Who doesn't humble brag about how hard they work? Our society has primed us to think that dedication means working over 15 hours a day, and sacrificing weekends and free time for the sake of the company. That's ridiculous. Working 40 hours a week is the "sweet spot." You shouldn't work more than that. There's a reason why "full-time" by American workforce standards is 40 hours a week. Working overtime actually hurts productivity. More hours equals lesser quality, and no one wants that. It's even illegal in some countries. Tell your bosses they're making you break international law.

It's sad that even working from home and escaping the confines of the office can be just as stressful as being in the office. Although the prospect of working from home seems like a more enticing option than driving to-and-from work, you end up working longer hours than your co-workers. Going to an office is actually a needed distraction from the home life. So how does this tie into the company's responsibility? Companies need to improve the work environment to make us happy to go to work—we shouldn't be trying to escape it.

You know those people that call themselves human but you've always questioned whether or not they are being honest? The ones that claim they're working hard to make the workplace better for you, but you never hear from them? Every time you go into their office to make a complaint, there's never anyone in the chair? Those are the people in Human Resources, and apparently there's proof that HR departments are ineffective in their current state. In fact, a lot of them don't know what exactly they're supposed to be doing, let alone how to effectively measure success. Are these departments even necessary? A growing number of people think not.

We all love money, so what's the problem? I agree, money is great, but not when it's given to employees as a dangling carrot to work harder. It's an incentive, not actual recognition. If anything, it encourages temporary compliance until the reward is earned and does little to change long-term work ethic. In fact, a quarter of the workforce gives bonuses to mediocre employees anyway, which makes the effect of the bonus less effective. What does work? Companies need to realize performance will improve through praise from upper management, and non-monetary rewards like leading big projects. There should still be raises, but they should be earned from evaluating our hard work long-term. (Obviously, if you're offered a bonus, you should take it and buy yourself something nice anyway,because, again, who doesn't love more money?) 

More and more companies are beginning to adopt the open work environment plan, in order to prosper better communication and relationships among their employees. It's also cheaper than giving everyone their own office. The results of this experiment have been that companies are doing it all wrong. Open work plans have actually lead employees to be less productive. Communication is good, but not when it leads to numerous distractions from side conversations and nerf darts hitting you every three hours. It doesn't help that the office is like a freezer too. Less productivity means more stress, which equals disgruntled workers. Happy employees can be found in their own offices. The likelihood of companies adopting that plan are, well, hahahaha.