But, how do they get stuff done?

After a week of work and a week of vacation in the south of France, I have to wonder.

The shops open around 9 a.m. Breakfast at the restaurants finishes at 10:30 a.m. Then they open for lunch at noon, and close again at 2 p.m. Dinner begins at about 6:30 p.m., but nobody really starts coming in until 7:30 or 8 p.m. They close at about midnight. The stores close at 9 p.m. Add all the “slack” time up, when compared to the typical American workday of 7 a.m. to 6 p.m., and it appears that France observes a five- to six-hour work day. The shops staff two shifts to make up the 12-hour total time open. The restaurant staff gets miffed if you come in late and don’t leave when they are ready to close. There’s a lot of talking, smoking, snacking on baguettes and coffee, sitting around the sidewalk cafés with an aperitif, strolling along with a sack of purchases draped over one arm, etc.

I spoke with one of our company managers in Lyon about this, and he said, “Il y’a du temps assez bien pour toutes.” Translation: “There is time enough for everything.” An enigmatic answer, but one that I’ve come to understand.

People do work here, but they put a significant part of their energies in relationship building, which comes when the work is not being done specifically. It comes at the café table, the stroll to the restaurant at lunch, the long lunch itself (two hours is typical), the drink at the pub after work, the invitation to one’s home for dinner and the weekend excursion with the friends one also works with.

Christoph further explained the French perspective when he talked about his son’s wedding. His son is 5 years old, mind you. But Christoph purchased two bottles of a particular wine vintage that is intended to be kept and aged for 15-20 years. That’s the range of age when the wine hits its literal sweet spot. I asked him why he did that.

“I wanted to make sure I had the best possible wine for toasting my son’s fiancee at the engagement celebration,” Christoph replied.

This man thinks ahead, and he thinks about relationships first, business second. That doesn’t mean he’s coming in second on his business goals. Far from it. Our French business unit is one of the better performing regions in our global business, and has been growing for more than 15 years of its existence. The French unit has innovated in several important product offerings in recent years, and has proven to be a place the rest of our company can learn from.

As my wife, Cheri, often says, “It’s not about quantity, it’s about quality.” Her advice rings especially true as I watch the French go about their seemingly disjointed work schedule. I think sometimes we Americans lose sight of this simple truth. As a consumptive society, we focus more on creating a torrent of economic activity, and perhaps not enough on the aim of that flow. As I wrote about months ago, I’ve had a hard time finding example companies during my work life where long-term planning meant more than three years. Christoph thinks decades ahead, and not just in the context of his family. He incorporates that mentality into his life, period.

The perspective of distance in time is a continuing interest of mine, one I try to extend as much as I can. Cheri and I were driving back from a wonderful national park east of Aix-en-Provence, called Les Gorges du Verdon, when we passed four Roman columns capped with an arch, the only remaining elements of what was once a large home, dated about 50 BCE. When the Romans put up a structure, they expected it to stay there. For a very long time. And so it does.

In Nimes, a small village northeast of Aix-en-Provence, there is a coliseum built by the Romans about 2,050 years ago. It is still in use for concerts today. The acoustics are great. I wonder how many of our skyscrapers will still be in use 2,000 years hence? How many of our suburban homes? How many of our sports arenas and stadiums?

France may have its economic problems, with high unemployment, an overly rotund government and a high tax structure. It’s not alone. But it also has a rich, deep current of meaning, built upon the relationships that take priority each and every day.

Sewitch is an entrepreneur and business psychologist. He serves as the vice president of global organization development for WD-40 Company. Sewitch can be reached at sewitch1@cox.net.