From Counting Hours to Creating Joy: Building a Culture of Outcomes

The recent debate around the 70–90 hour workweek sparked by Mr. Narayana Murthy former chairman Infosys and echoed by Mr. Subrahmanyan chairman of Larsen & Toubro has triggered many strong views. While I deeply admire both these leaders, I see this from a different lens, shaped by my own journey.

To me, the real question isn’t how many hours we work, but how we feel while working and what kind of outcomes we’re creating in the process.
I’ve come to believe:

·      Productivity isn’t proportional to time spent
·      Real outcomes flow from a culture of trust, purpose, and joy
·      We should consciously build work-life balance, not as a perk, but as a foundation for creativity, ownership, and well-being

At Escorts Kubota Limited , my first job way back in 1982 , I saw the power of joyful collaboration. By introducing gamification and team bonding, we created a culture where people looked forward to coming to work and outcomes improved without increasing hours in a unionised environment.

In another struggling company, we didn’t push for more time, we rebuilt trust, empowered people, and saw a turnaround within three months even while company lost money for four years and 4 CEOs changed .

Even in startups I’ve backed, when founders shift from chasing hours to building culture, the magic happens, better ideas, faster execution, and stronger teams.

But here’s my honest reflection.

The owner’s mindset, a philosophy I deeply believe in can sometimes become work addiction. I’ve experienced that firsthand.
Twice in my life, I got so deeply immersed in work that I ignored my own health and finances.

1. I lost my personal savings in 1994 where I took a decision and forgot about it as I was deeply immersed and addicted to delivering outcomes to my company .
2. I got so immersed in my work and did not focus on my health and was diagnosed with diabetes, a wake-up call that balance had taken a back seat.

These were hard but valuable lessons. Today, I strive to work with joy, not compulsion. With clarity, not just hustle.

From the pages of my book Dil Se Dost:
“Joyful effort beats forced exertion. Every. Single. Time.”

Let’s move from measuring time to building meaning.

Let’s create workplaces where culture drives outcomes, and where people return home fulfilled, not just tired.

Your thoughts are most welcome. What’s your take on this?

May 2025