Page 204 - The McKinsey Mind

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ManagingYourself 179

Obviously, even more than the lessons on advancing one’s career,
these lessons will work for some and not for others. We offer them
in the hope that they can help you.

THE McKINSEY WAY

McKinsey-ites often complain that they don’t have time for a per-
TEAMFLY
sonal life. Even so, they had these two lessons on the subject.
Surviving on the road. Travel is part of modern business life.
Try to see the opportunities in business travel, rather than the
costs. If you’re traveling someplace interesting, take advantage of
it. If your destination is less than exotic, minimize the drudgery
with proper planning. Pack light, make sure your transportation

is reliably arranged, and find ways to entertain yourself when you
stop working for the day. Don’t let life on the road become an
uninterrupted cycle of working, eating, and sleeping.
If you want a life, lay down some rules. When you work 80
hours or more per week, there’s little time left over for anything
else. If you want a life, you have to do a little advance work. Make

one day a week off-limits. Keep work and home separate. Make
plans when you know you’ll have free time. Of course, sometimes
events force you to violate your own rules. Still, because you laid
down those rules in the first place, you and those around you—
your boss, colleagues, spouse, kids—will know what to expect
most of the time.

LESSONS LEARNED AND IMPLEMENTATION
ILLUSTRATIONS
When you’re on the fast track, you’re busy, pulled in several direc-
tions at once, and can be under a lot of stress. To endure these pres-

sures with your sanity intact, you have to be able to strike a

®
Team-Fly