Eat Sleep Work Repeat

October 28, 2019
“Modern work is getting worse,” laments Daisley, European vice president for Twitter and creator of the Eat Sleep Work Repeat podcast, in this limp edition of the U.K. bestseller The Joy of Work. With 83% of Americans reporting being stressed out by their jobs, Daisley sees a situation that isn’t good for anyone, either labor or management: overwork doesn’t lead to higher profit, and companies would do well to remember that treating employees well is good business. With a surplus of enthusiasm but a dearth of data, Daisley argues that “the evidence on working is about to transform the way we work,” and guides readers through 30 ideas for improving their work, their workplaces, and their teams. As presented in three categories—recharge to unplug and perform self-care, sync to build relationships offline, and create buzz to encourage a “sense of engagement and positive energy” that will inspire one’s team—the advice given (“halve your meetings”; “keep teams lean”; “suggest a coffee break”) is too stale to ever escape cliché. His complaints, too, about the drain of constant connectivity and the threat of artificial intelligence feel old hat. Readers facing burnout should stick with the podcast and avoid its tepid print analog.

December 1, 2019
Daisley is the Vice President of Europe, Middle East, and Africa for Twitter and host of the popular Eat Sleep Work Repeat podcast. In this book, released in the UK as The Joy of Work, he repackages sage advice for white-collar employees. Each suggestion, referred to as a hack, is accompanied by anecdotes and contemporary academic research. Some hacks are common sense: avoid unnecessary distractions ( Have a Monk Mode Morning ); take a lunch break away from your desk and do something personally rewarding; try for eight hours of sleep per night. Others are more inventive: schedule mixers just for fun to encourage camaraderie and spark the natural flow of ideas; be open and willing to discuss problems, mistakes, and errors in order to help your team perform better. Corporate management would be best served by this book; by adopting some of the more feasible proposals, they could invigorate their employees and promote a more holistic work environment.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)