The Wolverine actor Hugh Jackman recently took to the airwaves to advocate for the so-called “85% rule”.
The Australian Golden Globe winner, speaking on The Tim Ferris Show podcast, explained that regularly working a little less hard could actually help you achieve better results – and higher productivity – in the long run.
It’s certainly true that maintaining maximum effort 100% of the time is unfeasible, and also liable to lead to burnout. But is the 85% mantra indicative of a wider cultural shift away from hard work? Or to put it another way, are we just getting lazier?
Keep reading to discover the truth behind the 85% rule and why adopting it could improve both your work-life balance and your emotional wellbeing.
The 85% rule might not be new but it could be gaining momentum
In 2022, as UK employees settled into their post-pandemic work lives, “quiet quitting” started to trend on social media.
While bosses were asking their employees to go the extra mile, the quiet quitters were doing just enough. That meant not working through lunch, switching off email notifications outside of office hours, and leaving work worries behind from Friday evening until Monday morning’s return to the office.
The quiet quitting movement followed the “great resignation”, which saw record numbers of job switches as people revisited their career choices post-pandemic. (It’s worth noting that the record rise followed an incredibly sharp drop, during Covid.)
Now, it’s the turn of the 85% rule to dominate headlines.
Whether you’re still at work or deep into retirement, you’ll know that some tasks have the scope to exceed 100%. You might surpass a weekly sales target or hit 15,000 steps in a day. But you can’t put more than 100% effort into a given task, and even maintaining 100% for any length of time is likely to lead to burnout.
This is where the 85% rule comes in.
The 85% rule might be a luxury not everyone can afford but the health benefits mean it’s worth trying
According to Statista, more than 1.1 million workers are currently on zero-hours contracts in the UK. Millions more are in unstable employment, through the gig economy or insecure, low-paid work. The Living Wage Foundation suggests that more than 6 million UK workers are currently in this position.
The thought of working less than 100% might not seem viable for these workers, but the 85% rule was never about being lazy.
Operating at 85% capacity is more sustainable, especially over longer periods.
In the same way that a runner will try to leave something in the tank for a sprint finish, working below 100% allows you to push when you need to. It might even mean you need to push less hard.
By working consistently at a high (but sustainable) level, you’re looking after your mental and physical wellbeing. This means you’re less likely to feel drained and more likely to avoid illness or mistakes that exhaustion can cause.
As nine-time Olympic gold medal sprinter Carl Lewis told Elite Track magazine nearly two decades ago, the idea of “no pain, no gain” is “ridiculous.” He adds: “Your training should be sensible. In many cases, it is more important to rest than it is to drive yourself to the point of pain.”
It is this attitude that you should consider taking into your working or retired life.
Younger generations may already be on to the 85% rule, favouring “hustles” over Saturday jobs
According to Small Business UK, Gen Z (those born between 1997 and 2012) are abandoning the types of Saturday jobs undertaken by previous generations, although this isn’t an indication of laziness.
Instead, this tech-savvy band of 11- to 26-year-olds are side-stepping part-time, badly paid jobs in favour of starting their own hustles.
Reports suggest that almost 1 in 3 (29%) have already started their own business, while 1 in 2 (50%) have plans in place to start one.
Nearly 7 in 10 (69%) of Gen Z see financial security as the most important factor when choosing a job, especially in the context of the cost of living crisis. But this generation is willing to take their own route to secure employment.
Shifts in the job market are afoot, with security and wellbeing top of workers’ post-pandemic list of priorities.
Be more (or less) Wolverine and adopt the 85% rule now
You might think of yourself as a perfectionist but that doesn’t mean you need to be working at 100% at all times.
Hugh Jackman has almost 50 film credits to his name, nine of which have seen him star as X-Men member Wolverine, aka Logan.
While Jackman might be working at 85%, the actor – who recently turned 55 – is showing no signs of slowing down. He’ll be beefing up once more, to reprise his Wolverine role for the 10th time in 2024’s Deadpool 3.
Being more like Wolverine might mean trying 15% less. Not only that but doing so could be better for your physical and mental health. Try it now!
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