In today's world luck is known to be the experience of notably positive, negative, or improbable events. I, on the other hand, like to think that there is no such thing as people who are naturally lucky, but rather than that fortunateness comes to those who are tenacious enough to know how to play life´s cards the right way.

We are constantly evolving, so why shouldn´t companies and the way we work do the same? I am lucky enough to have had the chance to experience two entirely different work environments, one more structured with a 9 to 5 schedule where productivity was measured by being on call even if you had nothing else to do and a totally different one where I am measured in objectives, manage my own time and have the chance to balance my personal and work life.

On a first glance, it would seem that the second one is less productive but in reality, it is the complete opposite. Taking a closer look I discovered that in this new environment I work more hours and am a hundred times more productive. Why? Because I choose to, I love my job and also I work with people who are as passionate and happy as I am. Having my own responsibility of achieving my goals and the possibility of having balance in my personal changes EVERYTHING to the point where a 5 day work week feels like a 3.

A recently read a study by economists at the University of Warwick that states that happiness has led to a 12% spike in productivity. That is why choosing a company that invests in employee support and satisfaction creates a productive environment for teams and leads to better results.

Shawn Anchor, author of The Happiness Advantage (read it now!), has found that the brain works much better when a person is feeling positive and crucial leaders become more creative, work better with their teams and solve problems in a faster way.

For companies that haven´t made a switch quite yet and are more conventional, there is no need of having a 3-day work week, improving your team's productivity will only be successful if you change your mindset and the way you measure employee performance. Compressed or independent work schedules don´t mean that you have to create more pressure for employees because you are in a time crunch to do more in less time, it means creating an environment that is focused on workers´ positive mental health, stress levels, and fatigue.

Jus squeezing five days of 10-hours-a-day work into a compressed 40-hour schedule is not the answer. This is why I believe that by measuring work in reaching objectives rather than time is more effective for having a constructive working environment.