This is Why You Don't Look at the Clock While at Work!

Back in school days, we loved to stare at the clock. Counting down until the bell rings. Years later and we find ourselves in the office, doing the same thing.

The clock is 3 minutes away from the end of your working hours, your desk is already cleared and your PC is turned off. If you’re guilty of staring at the clock too much, you may want to consider these things that could harm your career in the long-term.

6 ways clock-watching can be harmful for your career

1. You are now more stressed than ever.

Keeping up with the time every second can add extra pressure on you.

Obviously, clock watching can increase your stress levels. You waste time staring at the clock which means you have less time to do your work. You’re not only stressed out, you miss deadlines and risk rushing your work.

2. You’re wasting business time and money

When you’re constantly staring at the clock, you will not reach your full potential. You will lose your focus and your work quality will also suffer. Time is money, so if you’re being less productive and are starting  to get ready to go home before your work day is officially over, your boss will not like that.

3. You look demotivated and unhappy

When you love the job you’re in, you can get so focused in tasks that you don’t realise the time. But, if your manager sees you staring at the clock and not at your work, this implies that you don’t want to be in the office.

4. You may appear unreliable

Even though you should never be forced to work overtime, your boss would want to know if they can rely on you. If there’s a busy period and you never work a minute over your official hours, your boss will assume that you’re not dependable. 

5. You will miss out on opportunities

Bosses often arrive at the office early and leave late. By arriving and leaving on your official hours, you may miss valuable opportunities to connect and build relationships with them. Do remember that these people are the ones that makes the decisions that can help progress your career.

Is there a right time to look at the clock?

Though clock watching can be bad for your career, there’s also another side you should consider.

If you’re productive, focused and hard-working, and you deliver your projects on schedule, why shouldn’t you start and leave at your contracted hours?

If you hope to progress your career path, being known as someone who meets deadlines, provides excellent quality of work everytime and shows they love their work, is better than being known as someone who puts in long hours but does average work.

Time does not move faster when you stare at the clock. In fact it makes time feel like it’s going way slower. Though, if you can show that you’re a hard worker, complete tasks by deadlines, you will still get noticed for the right reasons even if you leave on time. It does not mean you’re lazy or uncommitted.

So make sure you read the situation carefully and make your mind up as to when is the right time to start and leave. The good news is that with today’s flexible working arrangements, businesses are focusing more on productivity and results, not how much overtime you did.

This article is adapted from Robert Half's "Is clock watching harmful to your long-term career?"