Beyond Collaboration Overload: How to Work Smarter, Get Ahead, and Restore Your Well-Being

Summary

Companies have no idea if collaboration benefits corporate performance, individual productivity, or employee well-being.

Collaboration, that seemingly Good Thing all companies encourage, is creating an epidemic of overload and burnout. It crushes our vitality and well-being, prevents us from being innovative, and blocks our companies from being the most successful organizations they could be.

To some this is surprising. It's assumed that it's always better to collaborate more—and faster. But the toll of all this collaboration is far more severe than companies know.

So, what can be done? Using network analysis, Rob Cross has found the answer to collaborative overload: Precision collaboration. This step-by-step guide will show you the practices that the best collaborators prevent overload from derailing their careers and, often, their lives, including: mobilizing a broad network, creating "pull" by drawing people and ideas to you, and engaging in renewal activities to promote well-being.

Precision collaborators create enormous impact through their networks while, amazingly, spending the least amount of time on collaborative tasks. You can do it, too. And by applying these collaborators' best practices, you can reclaim a whopping 18 percent to 24 percent of your time—a workday every week—to reinvest in activities that contribute to your success and your overall well-being.