Work It!

I chanced upon this one while "facebooking".

Not leaving the office on time - been there, done that! And I am actually "proud" of myself having undergone such process, like a badge on my sleeve.

I am not saying that everyone should choose to experience working endless hours in the office or wherever their workplace may be. But to go through such phase is quite an experience and you get to appreciate life more!

"Work is a never ending process. You can never finish all the work" - I remember one of my Indian team mates telling me "When I leave the office, you are still here. When I arrive in the morning, you are already here. Work will always be there, you will never run out of work." I laughed and gave him a big smile and to this day, I will always remember what he told me ;)

I can even remember those times when I had to leave work at around 12 mn to 2 am and be back at the office the next day at 8 am. I even found it "amusing" that the bus still had passengers at around such time because it was during December. One time, the bus was even quite full - all seats taken!

One time, I was at the office for 24 hours! I was supposed to leave earlier but the one who should relieve me woke up a bit late since she also worked overtime the day before. I didn't take it against her though because I understood her situation. I wasn't ready for that overtime so I had no extra clothes with me, no toothbrush! I just didn't know what to say when I met one of my managers on my way out and he was just coming in for work and I was still wearing the same clothes from the previous day. He gave me a funny puzzling look and somewhat said "You're only leaving now?"

I even remember that time my last day of work before the Christmas vacation. I reported early on a Friday and my flight for Davao was the at around 5 or 6 am the next day. I do not know what got into me but by Thursday night, I had all of my stuff ready. Maybe I already had a feeling that I was going to work late. And work late I did! I asked my housemates, who would be on the same flight with me to please bring my luggage and fetch me at the office at around 2 am. And off we went to the airport, with me wearing the same clothes I wore the day before. I tried to sleep while waiting for our flight but I guess I, together with my Davao friends, was just excited going home for a vacation. When we were seated, I immediately dozed off. I woke up and thought we were already in Davao. My friend told me we were still in Manila and apparently, there was a problem with regard to a baby who was a passenger in the said flight. I was just so tired that I went back to sleep .. hehe

I try to come to work early - at least before 8.00 or 8.30 am because I do not want to get caught up in traffic or find myself waiting for a ride for quite some time. Admittedly, there are times when there is not much work, but I still stay at the office because it is so hard to get a ride when the bus or the jeepney is full plus I have to consider the additional time I have to spend in traffic. So, I would rather stay late.

And there was even one whole month wherein I spend every single day at the office - yes, including Saturdays and Sundays! I know! Tsk, tsk

I also read one time that the overtime we do is usually the reason why we need to work overtime the next day or why we need to work more hours. Our average capacity is 8 working hours. Beyond that, we are prone to errors and mistakes - in other words, despite the long hours, we are actually less productive. Beyond the 8 hours, we think less clearly and become less focused. As such, errors and mistakes will arise. Thus, additional hours will be needed for reworks and remedies.

As I look back to those days, I do not regret experiencing it. I have learned a lot from my experience. But I am happy that it is over, hehe.

Nowadays, I rarely do overtime work as a practicing lawyer. Although, I usually arrive home late, it is because I teach at night. I do some teaching work at home though - checking papers, preparing test questions and studying for my lectures. But teaching gives me such joy ;) So, it's not really overtime .. hehe