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Blink 3 of 8 - The 5 AM Club
by Robin Sharma
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The Best Place to Work summary
Ron Friedman
The Art and Science of Creating an Extraordinary Workplace
17 mins
Brief summary
The Best Place to Work by Ron Friedman is a business book that reveals the science behind creating a happy and productive workplace. It offers practical insights to help no matter your position in the company, as an employer or an employee.
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The Best Place to Work
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Key idea 1 of 7
To boost workplace productivity, managers should promote schedule flexibility and embrace failure.
What’s the best way for you as a workplace leader to manage the productivity of your staff? According to traditional thinking, productivity is best achieved when employees spend nearly all their time working as hard as possible.
But although this old-fashioned approach was well-suited to the mechanical work that proliferated during the Industrial Revolution, today it’s seriously outdated.
Instead, modern society’s most successful managers eschew the rigid nine-to-five formula, encouraging staff to carve out flexible work schedules. In other words, they let employees work when and where they feel most comfortable.
For instance, old-fashioned managers might view napping as a waste of time. But in fact, napping is a great way for staff to keep their energy levels up for longer. (Of course, we’re talking about a 20-minute power-nap – not a long, deep sleep.)
So to that end, a manager wanting to promote productivity might skip the new espresso machine and buy a cozy futon instead.
Similarly, managers should create firm boundaries between work and home life. For example, Volkswagen and Daimler cut off e-mail access after business hours, allowing employees to recharge at night and be more productive during the day.
Practices like these are sure to boost productivity, but if you really want to ensure that your employees achieve at the highest level, you also have to embrace failure.
After all, no one can work at their full potential if they feel pressured to produce flawless work hour after hour. That’s simply too much stress!
A stress-free environment isn’t the only advantage of embracing failure: This attitude will also promote experimentation, leading to a culture of innovation.
To really understand the link between failure and innovation, consider this: The greatest inventions in human history followed repeated failure. Edison, for example, spent years trying and failing before he finally managed to invent the lightbulb.
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What is The Best Place to Work about?
If you want to design the best possible workplace, improve employee satisfaction and ultimately motivate your staff to deliver better results, look no further. The Best Place to Work will guide you through the process of improving your working environment, leading to more enthusiastic and productive employees.
The Best Place to Work Review
The Best Place to Work (2015) is a thought-provoking book that explores the key factors that contribute to creating an exceptional work environment. Here's why this book is worth reading:
- It offers insightful research and case studies that shine a light on what makes some workplaces truly exceptional, providing valuable takeaways for individuals and companies alike.
- Through its exploration of innovative practices and techniques, the book presents actionable strategies that can be implemented to improve workplace culture and employee satisfaction.
- With its engaging storytelling and relatable examples, it manages to make the subject of workplace dynamics and organizational psychology fascinating, ensuring that readers won't find it boring.
Best quote from The Best Place to Work
One thing we can predict with some certainty is that the Failure CV of most high achievers tends to be surprisingly lengthy.
—Ron Friedman
Who should read The Best Place to Work?
- Anyone who’s interested in workplace design
- Anyone who’s concerned about employee satisfaction
- Managers who want to improve productivity
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The Best Place to Work FAQs
What is the main message of The Best Place to Work?
The main message of The Best Place to Work is that creating a positive work culture leads to happier and more productive employees.
How long does it take to read The Best Place to Work?
The reading time for The Best Place to Work varies depending on the reader's speed. However, the Blinkist summary can be read in just 15 minutes.
Is The Best Place to Work a good book? Is it worth reading?
The Best Place to Work is worth reading as it offers valuable insights and practical strategies for improving workplace satisfaction and performance.
Who is the author of The Best Place to Work?
The author of The Best Place to Work is Ron Friedman.
What to read after The Best Place to Work?
If you're wondering what to read next after The Best Place to Work, here are some recommendations we suggest:
- Designing Your Work Life by Bill Burnett
- Work Smarter, Not Harder by The Blinkist Team
- The Buddha and the Badass by Vishen Lakhiani
- Work Simply by Carson Tate
- Talking to Strangers by Malcolm Gladwell
- 13 Things Mentally Strong People Don't Do by Amy Morin
- Conscious Business by Fred Kofman
- Be the Unicorn by William Vanderbloemen
- Mindstuck by Michael McQueen
- What Color Is Your Parachute? 2021 by Richard N. Bolles with Katharine Brooks