Over Work: Transforming the daily grind in the quest for a better life

by Brigid Schulte

'Fantastic' - Cal Newport

'A bold vision ... lights the way to fewer hours, less stress, and more meaning' - Adam Grant

Workers across all demographics, industries, and socioeconomic levels report exhaustion, burnout, and the wish for more meaningful lives.
Drawing on years of research, Brigid Schulte traces the arc of our discontent from a time before the 1980s, when work was more compatible with well-being and many jobs enabled 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.
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.

433 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 9, 2025

About the author

Brigid Schulte is an award-winning journalist for the Washington Post and Washington Post magazine. She was part of a team that won the Pulitzer Prize. She is also a fellow at the New America Foundation. She lives in Alexandria, Virginia with her husband and two children. She grew up in Oregon and spent summers in Wyoming, where she did not feel overwhelmed.