VIT's Founder Dr. Viswanathan Shares His 15-Hour Workday Philosophy

In a candid conversation with The Weekend Leader, Dr. G. Viswanathan, the founder-chancellor of Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT), talked about his daily life, sharing his way of working and also his thoughts on how much an average Indian needs to work.

He had this chat with The Weekend Leader after receiving The Weekend Leader Lifetime Achievement Award at a recent function at Ethiraj College, Chennai.

Born into a simple farming family in a small village, Dr. Viswanathan said he keeps up the same village routine and wakes up early in the morning.

He carries on the work culture of his roots, which is quite extraordinary. He starts his day with the first light, around 5:30 to 6:00 in the morning, and from then, it's all about work for him.

Unlike the usual 8-hour work day that many people follow, he puts together his sleep and rest time so that he can work around 12 to 15 hours every day. 


"I wake up around 5.30 - 6 am and start working. I don't have fixed working hours or holidays. I work all the days. Usually, people say work 8 hours, rest 8 hours, and sleep 8 hours. I mix sleep and rest so I get 16 hours to work," Dr. Viswanathan mentioned.


He pointed out that there are time limits in government jobs, but not for him. "To become a developed country, we can't work like the people in the West; we need to work harder so we can compete with them and maybe even get ahead of them," he said.

"If we work like Americans or Germans, how will we catch up? Our per capita income is $2,600, but theirs is $80,000. We have to work hard and make sure we also rise up," Viswanathan said. - TWL Bureau