By Shane Haumpton | Posted: February 18, 2020

We’ve all heard it before: work smart, not hard. This quote has inspired countless motivational posters and comics, all telling us how to become successful. But is the answer really a clean-cut choice between the two, or is the “secret” something far more obvious than most of us realize?

It’s undeniable that everyone aspires to live comfortably. No matter what that sort of lifestyle that may entail, the odds of success depend heavily on your ability to adapt to the demands of the present economic landscape. This involves leveraging available resources and maintaining a good work ethic. 

Unfortunately, modern society has placed high standards on the working class, which makes it harder to achieve financial security. Millennials have it tough, as they are often knee-deep in student debt that they end up paying off for years. On top of that, they have to contend with inflation and high costs of living. In response to their difficult economic situation, they end up working around the clock and putting in hours of overtime. A majority of Millennials also take on side hustles that offer extra income. From monetizing hobbies to working part-time jobs, everyday life has turned into an endless grind with no end in sight.

So how exactly do things get better? The trick is simple: by working smart.

What does it mean to work smart? 

Working smart means optimizing how you solve problems for more favorable outcomes. It requires you to be on the lookout for better alternatives that could save you both time and resources. 

The whole process of learning to work smart is a transformative mental exercise. It boosts your creativity and critical thinking skills, as well as helps you deal with workplace stress. In a lot of ways, you could say that working smart is like embracing a new lifestyle.

Adopting new perspectives

People who work smart tend to be more innovative, since they’re able to view problems from different perspectives. They know when to challenge existing procedures and come up with new ways to solve a problem. Because this approach requires less effort in its latter stages, it decreases the likelihood of burnout. More importantly, looking at things from different perspectives often yields better results. 

Organized decision-making

Working smart teaches one the value of prioritization. It ensures that no urgent matter is left unresolved by the end of the designated timeframe. As a result, a project is guaranteed to have been completed as soon as possible. The practice pushes people to stay organized and systemic by helping them refine their time management skills.

Greater industry expertise

Working smart is the right path to be on if you’re aiming to become a industry leader. That’s because this technique implores you to learn more about your area of expertise. After all, the more you understand the internal workings of your system, the easier it becomes for you to make smarter workplace decisions.

It also promotes skills that are essential to building an efficient assembly line. After all, smart workers recognize the need to delegate tasks to speed up production. They also make the right call when it comes to assigning functions to the right colleagues.

Making the right call

Finally, working smart means knowing when to quit. At first glance, that may seem like a terrible thing. But the truth is, a logical worker knows when to stop forcing things to work. 

Quitting, in this sense, is not simply accepting defeat. Rather, it’s a strategic retreat that helps you focus and redirect your attention to more pressing concerns. This way, a smart worker can cut losses by pulling out and using their resources elsewhere. 

Is working hard working smart? 

The idea of achieving more while doing less can sound enticing. It’s what tempts people into thinking it’s the “secret ingredient” to success, since it offers an instant answer to their problems. This misconception is what drives most people to believe that working hard and working smart are mutually exclusive options. But the key attributes of a smart worker are achieved through hard, consistent work.

Working smart requires patience

You can’t come up with efficient shortcuts if you haven’t walked the entire road and back. In order to be a smart worker, you need to toil for months or years before it all pays off. After all, the time and effort you put in will give you the skills and knowledge you need to make more informed decisions. 

Everything you need, from understanding the workings of your industry to redesigning your strategies, calls for tedious work. And once you’re at the summit, you’ll find out that the learning never stops. 

The constant effort to achieve greatness

The most successful CEOs will tell you there is no substitute for hard work. Even with a well-thought plan, you still have to devote a hundred percent effort to everything you do. Integrating hard work with smart work is the best way to get meaningful results. 

True enough, successful people work efficiently. They follow methods that make the lives of their employees easier. But that doesn’t mean they throw perseverance out the window. Those who are truly successful are still driven by the same level of enthusiasm that they had when they were just starting out in the industry. 

No shortcuts to success

Working hard and working smart come hand-in-hand. Just doing the former will easily leave you feeling burned out, while skipping ahead to the latter is almost impossible. People who take shortcuts end up half-baked, lacking the proper depth and mastery of a true expert. The moment you’re content with only half of the equation is the moment you cap your growth and stay stuck.

The hard truth is that securing financial security is an uphill battle. There is no magic formula that offers instant results. As Mark Cuban puts it, “Work like there is someone working 24 hours a day to take it away from you”. No matter what you’re doing, have grit, work smart, and don’t forget to live life meaningfully—you’ll thank yourself for it later.

Shane Haumpton is a contributing writer for several websites and blogs. She has written on a variety of topics, ranging from lifestyle, photography, travel, and arts and crafts to gadgets, social media, and internet safety. This self-confessed coffee addict and shutterbug manages to do all these while enjoying life as a nomad.