Research commissioned by British bank Aldermore
suggests that laziness costs the average Brit almost £17,000 over the
course of their lifetime, because too many of us have become used to
taking the easier option.
Chief examples of laziness, says the report, include driving rather
than cycling or walking; going to the local car wash instead of getting a
bucket and sponge and doing it ourselves; putting off canceling direct
debits; and not bothering to get a refund on unwanted clothes we have
purchased. Almost half of the 2,000 people surveyed said they’d rather
pay someone to take care of boring tasks, such as cleaning the windows,
than do it themselves.
According to Aldermore:
“The average Brit could save £52 a year by cancelling pointless direct
debit payments. Washing [your] own car would save £68 a year and
cleaning [your own] windows £72 a year.” One in three never bothers to
turn off appliances at the wall, while one in ten books more expensive
train tickets because they can’t be bothered to look for cheaper
alternatives. 10 per cent of respondents also admitted they could cancel
gym membership they don’t make use of.
Laziness can be a significant problem in the workplace, too, of
course (which reminds me of the old gag – “How many work at your
place?”, “Oh, about half of them…). Although published in the US a few
years ago, this infographic provides much food for thought for employers.
Based on stats gathered by Online MBA, it suggests the average US
worker fritters away three hours every eight-hour working day – and that
doesn’t include lunch and other scheduled breaks.
Chief workplace distractions include: surfing the web (44%, amounting to as much as 18
wasted hours per employee per week); socialising with other workers
(23.4%); daydreaming (3.9%); and applying for other jobs (1.3%).
Older members of staff and those less well educated are significantly
less likely to skive, while 77 per cent of those surveyed admitted to
looking at their Facebook pages during work hours (39% said they would
quit their jobs if Facebook was banned at work), while 60% made personal
online purchases at work.
Key reasons why staff said they wasted time at work were lack of work
(33.2%), feeling underpaid (23.4%) and being distracted by colleagues
(14.7%).
Well worth a read is entrepreneur Andy Yates’ recent piece for ThisIsMoney.co.uk on how time is often wasted in offices
and how it can be remedied. “The real question businesses need to ask
about time-wasting is – why are employees doing it in the first place?”
stresses Andy. “Unchallenging work, poor management and motivation are
all common problems. Just think how much more any business could get
done with a productive workforce.”
With Britain recently exposed as Europe’s third laziest country, buoyed by the nation’s phenomenal Olympic success, maybe it’s time we all became a little less lazy at work and home.
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