Hard Work Vs Smart Work: What’s The Difference?

Don’t work hard. Work smart. Does that sound familiar? If you’ve been around the internet or attended seminars or conferences in the last 2 to 5 years, you’ve probably heard this advice. “Work smart while your mates are working hard”. But what does that mean? What is the speaker trying to convey to you? That’s what we’ll be talking about in this article.

What is hard work?

I wrote an article about what hard work means. Check it out here. Hard work is simply something that requires a great deal of effort and endurance.

You’re working hard when you spend hours on a mental or physical task. It involves using your strength, willpower, and creative energy on a single task and having that be your prime focus until you achieve a particular outcome. Even when you don’t find the activity pleasurable, you expend so much energy on it to produce a positive result.

Think of a painter who spends days on a single artwork, an athlete who wakes up early to train for hours, or an author who gives themselves to research as they prepare to write a book. These are cases of working hard to achieve a goal. I’m sure you know why hard work is important. We know that achieving anything of substance requires intentional, focused, hard work, which isn’t always enjoyable.

What is smart work?

When people reference smart work, they’re often describing quicker, smoother, and more efficient ways to get things done. They’re not just considering the time, effort, and endurance a task requires. They’re looking at efficiency, optimization, and speed.

Smartness especially applies to mental or creative tasks, but even physical tasks, there aren’t many corners you can cut. An athlete has to subject their body to consistent and intense physical training, period. However, for mental and team-related tasks, a couple of things may help you cut corners, save time, collaborate, and still achieve a similar result.

Hard work vs smart work

Let’s compare hard work vs smart work using the following metrics:

Community

You can build a community from scratch with few resources and influence. I mean, there’s a reason why personal brand is quite common today. However, as you build a personal brand, it’s a smart decision to join existing communities, build and nurture relevant relationships, and give out value to people while working to build credibility and grow your community.

It’s also smart to join communities of people that have similar beliefs and goals, that way you are inspired by conversations and watching progress to double up and do more.

Tools

From machines to applications and AI, there’s no shortage of tools for different tasks. Whether you’re a baker, painter, or marketer, investing in specific tools will shorten the time for certain tasks, boosting your efficiency.

I remember when I was learning to bake a few years ago, I manually performed the creaming method, mixing the sugar and butter; it took almost an hour to get a smooth consistency, and I was working hard. But a creaming machine will achieve that in 15 minutes or less. If I’m taking baking seriously, a creaming machine will be a meaningful investment. You’d be surprised at how some free or affordable tools will optimize your workflow.

Mentors

Yes, you can work hard to learn things yourself, but how much time will you save if you had the guidance of someone who has walked the exact path you’re trying to? That’s the smartness of having mentors.

Best case scenario, you have direct access on 1 on 1 with a mentor who checks in on you regularly, answers your questions, and offers tailored advice where you need it. I even need a mentor like that. If you don’t have one yet, take advantage of the access you have to people in your community, ask questions at events, listen to relevant talks, webinars, courses, and recordings etc., Feast on the lessons and mistakes people who are wiser than you have to share, and you’ll definitely move faster than you would in ignorance and trial and error.

Delegation

As you advance in your career, you need to delegate certain tasks so you can focus on what matters most. Some parts of your life or business should function without your presence. That’s how you grow and maximize your efficiency. It is smart work to know when it’s time to cut some responsibilities off your plate and assign them to someone skilled in that area. It will cost you, but you’re getting a boost in productivity.

Priority

Hard work loves sheer dedication, long working hours, and completing complex tasks. Smart work is more strategic in its approach to tasks. What tasks will get me closer to my goal? Those get a higher priority.

For a bootstrapping startup, the primary goal is generating revenue. All tasks and activities should be geared towards generating income more than anything else. For an athlete, the priority might be getting selected for a national competition. All trainings, schedules, and activities should be focused on getting that result.

Collaboration

One can chase a thousand and two ten thousand. It applies to every area of our lives. When 2 or 3 hardworking people agree to pull their resources, skills, and time together to work on something, they both achieve more than they would individually. That’s being smart! For instance, growing creators within a similar niche can decide to work on a batch of content or a campaign together to expand their network.

Work hard and work smart

I believe it’s a hard-working mind that finds a smarter way to get things done. While it’s good to show dedication in whatever craft you find you’ve chosen, take advantage of relationships, tools, skills, connections, and exposure that’ll enhance your productivity, efficiency, and improve your results. Constantly be on the lookout for ways to streamline your workflow, save time, and focus on what really matters. Be a smart, hard worker!