Over Work
09 January 2025Imprint: Ithaka
Synopsis
'Fantastic' - Cal Newport
'A bold vision ... lights the way to fewer hours, less stress, and more meaning' - Adam Grant
Workers across all demographics, industries, and socioeconomic levels report exhaustion, burnout, and the wish for more meaningful lives.
Drawing on years of research, Brigid Schulte traces the arc of our discontent from a time before the 1980s, when work was more compatible with well-being and many jobs enabled a single earner to support a family, until today, with millions of people working multiple hourly jobs or in white-collar positions where no hours are ever off duty.
She casts a wide net in search of solutions, exploring the movement to institute a four-day workweek, introducing Japan's Housewives Brigade - which demands legal protection for family time - and embedding with CEOs who are making the business case for humane conditions.
Rich with stories and informed by deep investigation, Over Work lays out a clear vision for ending our punishing grind and reclaiming leisure, joy, and meaning.
'A bold vision ... lights the way to fewer hours, less stress, and more meaning' - Adam Grant
Workers across all demographics, industries, and socioeconomic levels report exhaustion, burnout, and the wish for more meaningful lives.
Drawing on years of research, Brigid Schulte traces the arc of our discontent from a time before the 1980s, when work was more compatible with well-being and many jobs enabled a single earner to support a family, until today, with millions of people working multiple hourly jobs or in white-collar positions where no hours are ever off duty.
She casts a wide net in search of solutions, exploring the movement to institute a four-day workweek, introducing Japan's Housewives Brigade - which demands legal protection for family time - and embedding with CEOs who are making the business case for humane conditions.
Rich with stories and informed by deep investigation, Over Work lays out a clear vision for ending our punishing grind and reclaiming leisure, joy, and meaning.
Details
09 January 2025432 pages
9781785123801Imprint: Ithaka
Reviews
'In her fantastic new book, Brigid Schulte combines meticulous research with compelling profiles to argue that the exhausting way we work today is a choice. More sustainable and equitable options are possible, but only if we're willing to engage at the societal level in the hard but necessary work of making needed change'Cal Newport, New York Times bestselling author of Slow Productivity and Digital Minimalism
'A bold vision for transforming work from a burden that takes over our lives into an activity that enriches them ... her carefully researched book lights the way to fewer hours, less stress, and more meaning'Adam Grant, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Think Again and Hidden Potential
'A great introduction to the gnarly problems of work and policies to tackle them'Emma Jacobs, The Financial Times
'Revelatory and inspiring, Over Work delivers the hopeful news that real change is possible ... The stories captured in Schulte's book point to the possibility of an economy where we move beyond winners and losers to shared opportunity and true progress'Ai-jen Poo, author of The Age of Dignity