Over Work: Transforming the Daily Grind in the Quest for a Better Life

"Brigid Schulte is a vital voice on the future of work, and her carefully researched book lights the way to fewer hours, less stress, and more meaning."
―Adam Grant, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Think Again and Hidden Potential, and host of the podcast WorkLife

From the New York Times bestselling author of Overwhelmed, a deeply reported exploration of why American work isn't working and how our lives can be made more meaningful

Following Overwhelmed, Brigid Schulte's groundbreaking examination of time management and stress, the prizewinning journalist now turns her attention to the greatest culprit in America's quality-of-life crisis: the way our economy and culture conceive of work. Americans across all demographics, industries, and socioeconomic levels report exhaustion, burnout, and the wish for more meaningful lives. This full-system failure in our structure of work affects everything from gender inequality to domestic stability, and it even shortens our lifespans.

Drawing on years of research, Schulte traces the arc of our discontent from a time before the 1980s, when work was compatible with well-being and allowed a single earner to support a family, until today, with millions of people working multiple hourly jobs or in white-collar positions where no hours are ever off duty.

She casts a wide net in search of solutions, exploring the movement to institute a four-day workweek, introducing Japan's Housewives Brigade--which demands legal protection for family time--and embedding with CEOs who are making the business case for humane conditions. And she demonstrates the power of a collective and creative demand for change, showing that work can be organized in an infinite number of ways that are good for humans and for business.

Fiercely argued and vividly told, rich with stories and informed by deep investigation, Over Work lays out a clear vision for ending our punishing grind and reclaiming leisure, joy, and meaning.

Author: Brigid Schulte
Publisher: Henry Holt & Company
Published: 09/17/2024
Pages: 432
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 1.3lbs
Size: 9.40h x 6.50w x 1.60d
ISBN: 9781250801722


Review Citation(s):
Kirkus Reviews 06/15/2024

About the Author
Brigid Schulte is the author of the bestselling Overwhelmed: Work, Love, and Play When No One Has the Time and an award-winning journalist for the Washington Post, where she was part of a team that won a Pulitzer Prize. She is also director of the Better Life Lab, the work-life, gender equity, and family-supportive social policy program at the New America Foundation. She lives in Alexandria, Virginia, with her husband and two children.