I am going to lay something on you today that might sound a little weird at first-but stay with me for a moment. It might not change your life, but it just might change your attitude toward professional work.

Have you ever known anyone in a professional atmosphere to work eight straight hours without stopping-without cruising by the water cooler, without going out to buy nappies, without….

Of course you haven't. Work is rarely a forced march-unless you work in a sweat shop.

When it comes to my company, I believe fervently in the 24-hour work day. No, that doesn't mean I am a slave driver. I simply believe that my professional employees have 24 hours to do their jobs.

In a global, internet world, employers need to recognize that the most valuable benefit they can give employees is the freedom to work at the most convenient time-and often from the most convenient location.

The fact is we live and work in 24-hour time segments, and it really makes no difference if we are behind a desk, driving a car, or taking a shower.

Time is not a thing. It is a state of mind. Intellectual work can not be lassoed and contained within a glass cubicle any more than it can be sustained in a Petri dish for study.

Paid time can and does occur anywhere, anytime. There is nothing written down-biblical or otherwise-that prescribes a workday as consecutive hours, usually eight and usually during the day.

We as professionals have become too sophisticated, too mobile and too global to think in the narrow confines of traditional paid time. We have too many other responsibilities to ourselves and our families.

For those who prefer the nine to five tradition, that's fine, but all should realize that it is simply another option, and probably not the best one.

As much as possible given client, customer or the schedules of others, give your employees the freedom to decide when to work

There would be anarchy, you say. No, just the opposite. You will have a more productive employee.