--- title: "Daily Buzz: Your Standing Desk Is Overrated" id: "44816" type: "post" slug: "daily-buzz-your-standing-desk-is-overrated" published_at: "2018-11-20T19:56:11+00:00" modified_at: "2026-03-16T23:10:44+00:00" url: "https://associationsnow.com/2018/11/20/daily-buzz-your-standing-desk-is-overrated/" markdown_url: "https://associationsnow.com/2018/11/20/daily-buzz-your-standing-desk-is-overrated.md" excerpt: "Replacing sitting with standing at work doesn’t mean you’re getting more health benefits. Also: why employees cut corners in day-to-day operations." taxonomy_category: - "Operations" taxonomy_post_tag: - "accountability" - "AssociationsNow" - "Business" - "process improvement" - "Workplace" taxonomy_content_format: - "Article" taxonomy_role: - "Director" - "Manager" - "VP" taxonomy_persona: - "Association Professionals" --- [Home](https://associationsnow.com/) » [Articles](https://associationsnow.com/format/article/) » Daily Buzz: Your Standing Desk Is Overrated Standing desks might not have the health benefits you think they do. Sure, we all know that sitting for long periods of time is not good for our health—but standing desks don’t promote physical activity. They promote standing, which is not exercise. “Well-meaning safety professionals and some office furniture manufacturers are pushing sit-stand workstations as a way of improving cardiovascular health—but there is no scientific evidence to support this recommendation,” says Dr. David Rempel, a professor of medicine at the University of California, San Francisco, who has [written on this issue (opens in a new tab)](https://journals.lww.com/joem/Citation/2018/07000/Do_Sit_Stand_Workstations_Improve_Cardiovascular.14.aspx) , in an [interview with The New York Times (opens in a new tab)](https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/19/upshot/why-standing-desks-are-overrated.html) . Rempel says standing desks can be helpful in relieving body aches for those with lower back or neck pain, but replacing sitting with standing ultimately doesn’t make a person more active. (And with that, I will lower the standing desk I am currently writing from and take a seat.) ### Keep Employees Accountable to the Process > How do you help your employees [#worksmart (opens in a new tab)](https://twitter.com/hashtag/worksmart?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) > ? [@FastCompany (opens in a new tab)](https://twitter.com/FastCompany?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) > gives you 4 reasons why employees may be ignoring processes: [https://t.co/e3k5OKqk0P (opens in a new tab)](https://t.co/e3k5OKqk0P) > [#leadership (opens in a new tab)](https://twitter.com/hashtag/leadership?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) > > — Paul Struthers (@StruthersPaul) [November 20, 2018 (opens in a new tab)](https://twitter.com/StruthersPaul/status/1064903839780876288?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) **Every organization has processes** in place to get work done efficiently. But let’s face it: Sometimes people cut corners. Gwen Moran writes for *Fast Company* [that employees might skip over steps (opens in a new tab)](https://www.fastcompany.com/90264166/this-is-why-your-employees-cut-corners-and-what-to-do-about-it) because they don’t understand the process, want to get it done faster, or think they know better. “When employees are on the front lines, they usually develop a good understanding of how to do their jobs,” Moran says. “And when processes are redundant or inefficient, they may skip or change steps because they think they know how to do the job better.” If adherence to processes is a chronic problem, it might be time for leadership to step in to keep everyone accountable. ### Other Links of Note **Is gamification the key** to increased video engagement? [The HubSpot blog explains (opens in a new tab)](https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/video-gamification-data) . **Here’s how Apple CEO Tim Cook** starts his workday, [from Quartz at Work (opens in a new tab)](https://qz.com/work/1468874/how-apple-ceo-tim-cook-spends-the-first-two-hours-of-his-workday/) . **The five reports every association** should pull data from, [according to the MemberClicks blog (opens in a new tab)](https://blog.memberclicks.com/5-reports-no-association-should-live-without) . (Aleutie/iStock/Getty Images Plus) [Jeff Hsin](https://associationsnow.com/author/jeff-hsin/) [More articles by this author](https://associationsnow.com/author/jeff-hsin/) Tags: [#accountability](https://associationsnow.com/tag/accountability/) [#Business](https://associationsnow.com/tag/business/) [#process improvement](https://associationsnow.com/tag/process-improvement/) [#Workplace](https://associationsnow.com/tag/workplace/) **Stay Informed** [Subscribe to our free newsletter](https://associationsnow.com/newsletter/) , *Associations Now Daily News*, to find out what’s happening in the association world every business day. ## You Might Like - [TemplateMembers onlyIEEE Process for Monthly Chargebacks DocumentMay 2, 2008](https://associationsnow.com/2008/05/02/ieee-process-for-monthly-chargebacks-document/) - [TemplateMembers onlyData Administration SpecialistJune 13, 2006](https://associationsnow.com/2006/06/13/data-administration-specialist/) - [PodcastAssociations Now Presents: Beyond the Tech Stack: How AI Is Changing the Association PlaybookOctober 29, 2026](https://associationsnow.com/2026/10/29/associations-now-presents-beyond-the-tech-stack-how-ai-is-changing-the-association-playbook/) - [PodcastAssociations NOW Presents: Industry Partner Edition-Helping Associations Thrive in the Age of AIJuly 16, 2026](https://associationsnow.com/2026/07/16/associations-now-presents-industry-partner-edition-helping-associations-thrive-in-the-age-of-ai/) ## Comments **Comments are for ASAE members.** [Learn more about comments on this site.](https://associationsnow.com/comments/) [Log in](https://associationsnow.com/login?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fassociationsnow.com%2F2018%2F11%2F20%2Fdaily-buzz-your-standing-desk-is-overrated%2F%23comments) to your member account or [join ASAE](https://my.asaecenter.org/select-a-membership-type/) !