The Case for the Three Day Weekend

My friend Fred only works from Monday to Thursday.  In the summers, only Monday to Wednesday.  I considered his substantial business success and tried to square that with what I saw as fewer work days- and Fred is a manager to boot!

One day I just asked him, “Fred, what’s the deal with taking Fridays off?”  Not defensively at all, Fred explained that after 9/11 his whole mindset changed and he wanted to spend more time with his family.  The work part, that would have to figure itself out.  I was dumbfounded that such a profoundly successful guy would actually put his family before his job. 

Guess what?  It hasn’t hurt him in the least, from a career standpoint.  From a family standpoint as well, things couldn’t be better for Fred and his family.

Now consider your own work schedule: what if you could create a framework so that you, like Fred, could enjoy a three day weekend each and every weekend.  According to one top thinker, it might be easier than you think.  

I’m enjoying the interview with Graham Allcott of ThinkProductive in anticipation of the latest Productive Magazine.  According to Allcott, people should consider Fred as less of an outlier and more of a model for knowledge work.  

The argument goes like this:

1. Knowledge workers can focus and crank out work in just four days per week.  If they really buckle down, kill off unnecessary meetings and schedule in “I’m-not-available” time, all of their work can get done in four days.  While in the agrarian economy, five or six days were necessary, today’s knowledge worker only needs four.  He's like a ninja weilding a sword towards unncessary interruptions and scheduled events.  

2. A three day weekend allows for true renewal.  When you return on Monday, you’re fresh and ready to rock and roll.  You didn’t spend most of your weekend running errands or doing lower level tasks.  The three full days off work for your wellbeing rather than against it.

3. By only working four days, you focus only on what’s truly important.  I know that in my own life, if I have to get something done, it gets done.  I once had months to prepare for an exam for my professional license.  The extra time did nothing but encourage me to procrastinate and study at the last minute.  On the other hand, if I only had a month to prepare, I probably would have studied more.

So what do you think?  Wouldn’t you like to work just four days per week?  It is possible with a bit of planning, an appreciative boss (unless you are the boss), and a desire to experiment with your own productivity.

Now that's a kind of work experiment that I think I'll try on for size.  

Photo courtesy of FE

Here's a Method for Working From Home When You Have Kids

I have Fridays off in the Summer and it's terrific.  No waking up at 5.  The ability to stay up late the night before.  Planning something special with the kids.  Oh and there's one more thing-

Getting a bit of work done.

While I have three day weekends in the Summer, there are still pieces of work projects that I take home with me.  And guess what?  I enjoy doing work from home, even though it's hard to do so.

Kids make life amazing, contemplative and something holy.

It's the kids, I keep telling Cary.  These short people who live in our home and demand so much attention, backpacks, food, errands, playdates- the list goes on.  Sometimes we'll laugh after the kids go to bed and say, "It's those darn kids! Our house would be cleaner and our bank account fatter without them."  And of course, we wouldn't trade them for the world. 

A sentiment that every parent feels I'm sure.  Kids make life amazing, contemplative and something holy.  

So back to the issue of work.  You have these amazing rugrats at home and still need to get an hour or two of work done.  This isn't a post for HomeWorkers like Aaron or Dave or my friend Gene. It's for the rest of us who just need a bit of focus on a random Friday in August.  

Here's a simple method for getting stuff done when you need to at home.  All it takes is a bit of courage and the ability to communicate your needs.  Are you ready for it? Wait for it, wait for it...

Tell your family that you need to work.  Then go and do it.  

This may sound overly simple but it's not.  The steps are simple.  

1. Tell your wife and kids that you have some important work that needs to get done.  Tell them the time when you have to do it.  Be specific and realistic.  
2. Build in a visual prompt for the space and time in which you are working.

Want to see it in action?  

• "Kids, Dad has to get some important work done today.  I plan to do it just after lunch and it will only take about an hour. Once Dad gets it done, I'm all yours and we can do some cool stuff."
• After lunch, announce that you're going to a particular place where you can focus and do your work.  
• If you have a dedicated space (I have a study in my basement), close the door to signal the reminder to the kids that you are working. If you don't have a dedicated space, find one.  Few people can work out in the open like on the couch when Cartoon Network is blaring in the background.  

Here's the catch- you can't abuse this protocol.  Let's say you finished your hour of work.  Don't let that carry into another hour.  Before you know it, the door banging will be deafening, followed by notes under the door and then someone will lose an eye.  If you can get up early and get your work done before the kids wake up, even better. The whole point of this is to focus your energy and attention on the things that you need to when you need to.  This works for me and my Fridays have been productive as a result.

What works for you when you have to work from home?

Photo courtesy of TB

Do You Feel Guilty Taking Work Home?

If your job is anything like mine, there is always more work to be done in any given day.  I often crank through my daily To Do list but often have things left over that I would have liked to have gotten to but just didn’t.  

These are often things tangentially related to work, like working on my blog, applying to grad school, or planning out new projects.  There just doesn’t seem to be enough hours in the day to get it all done.  As a result, I feel guilty at least some of the time because my focus is divided between my family and my work.  

Can you relate?

I’ll be posting the next podcast on this topic but wanted to get the conversation started here.  My questions for you:

1. Do you work at home even after you’ve left your official job at work?

2. Do you feel guilty when you do this?

3. What effects does this have on your relationship with your spouse or your kids?

You can post your comments below or join the conversation on Twitter.  

Photo courtesy of AMDG 

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How I Turn an Average Sunday into an Awesome Monday

Sunday came and went.  You wanted to be jazzed up about worship but so many things got in the way.  If your family is anything like mine, Sunday mornings are rarely calm and peaceful.  

I’m typically the Planner.  My role is to keep everyone on track, at least that’s what I tell myself.  I bark out reminders about time and generally keep the trains moving.  My specialty: the Countdown, that mystical journey from breakfast to actually getting in the car to go to Church. It usually goes like this:

• 20 minutes till we leave!
• We have only 10 minutes left so get yourselves together!
• That’s it! Why am I the only one who cares about getting to Mass on time?! (Notice the question mark AND the exclamation mark- nice.)

Sadly, my role as Planner too often leaves me frustrated and stressed.  By the time we get to church, I need a break.  If the homily is less than stellar, Sunday just seems to fall flat.  

Can you relate?

Maybe you’re the Planner like me.  You may also be the Pacifier, another title for the one who packages up snacks and sip cups for small kids.  My wife, she’s the Calmer, an expert in “everything’s ok sweetie”.  This is the perfect counterpart to my increasingly anxious point of view.  Then there's the Commisioner.  This role is summed up in various threats including but not limited to manual labor for the rest of the day or a suspension in privileges for an entire week.  

So what to do if you face a Monday when Sunday was less than inspirational?  Let’s face it- this happens a lot.  Too many of our churches are mediocre or just limping along to meet the needs of the busy professional who faces a boatload of email, meetings and stressors come Monday.

take your faith with you into Monday and make a difference

Here are three suggestions for turning an average Sunday into an awesome Monday: 

Be honest with your expectations.  Did you put all of your faith eggs into the basket of your priest or minister?  When he came up short, did you blame him?  Instead of pointing the finger, be honest with yourself.  Did you read the Gospel ahead of time and did you get up early in order to prepare yourself for worship?  How much time and effort did you put into worship?

1. Resolve to have a quiet time first thing on Monday.  This way, you’ll be sure to get your compass in order.  I recommend Give Us This Day or Magnificat if you’re dialing in to the daily Mass readings.  (Full disclosure: I write for Give Us so I’m biased.)  Sharpen the pencil of your journal writing or go deep with a digital journal like Day One for iOS.  
2. Greet the first person you meet at work as if they didn’t get to church on Sunday.  You may be the only Christian they know, so get out there and act like it.  So you’re preacher didn’t go for the gusto on Sunday.  That doesn’t mean that you can’t take your faith with you into Monday and make a difference.

Whatever you decide to do after a flat Sunday, always remember that God is there on Monday just as much as He is on Sunday in a bright and happy church.  

What can you do on Monday to make up for a flat Sunday?

Photo courtesy of EM

How to Deal with Small Disappointments

Have you ever walked into a store with the hope of getting a great deal?  Or a car dealership?  Usually that faint  glimmer of hope starts with an ad in the paper.  

I had one of those moments this past week when Cary and I were scheduled to get new eye glasses.  The ad said "Two Pairs for $69 Including an Eye Exam".  A friend had recommended the place and we picked up our perscriptions from Dr. Mackey and were off.  

A half hour into the store and we had picked out our glasses.  I typically dread this experience as the kids are getting increasingly antsy and I just want to get the thing over with.  We sit down with Joe, the store rep and begin "The Process".   

I'm familiar with The Process in car dealerships and I would rather have a root canal than purchase a new car anytime soon.  An ad draws you into the place and your hope of a new, fresh, humane car buying experience is tangible.  It quickly goes downhill and you begin to relive the last car buying experience you had (which was a nightmare).  The rest is history.  Why car dealerships don't change their model is beyond me.

Back to Joe and the eye glasses as he tells me, "Mike, I'm sorry but your perscription is out of date; today's deal won't apply unless of course you want two pairs of specs for yourself."  Now, why would I want two pairs of glasses for myself?  Only celebrities do that, I told myself.  Why did Dr. Mackey send me off with an outdated perscription in the first place?  Why won't Joe make an exception and send me away happy?  Lots of questions and few answers.  

Worst of all- why the heck did I just waste a half hour of my life? 

I left Joe and his pretty shop pretty bummed.  Cary got her glasses and I played the part of the good husband, telling her that "she really needed them more than I did anyway".  Deep down though, I was seething.  I just hate wasting time and this situation was all wrong.  

Until I realized that in the big scheme of things, none of this mattered.  

I wasted time, sure, but may have walked away with a few insights as a result.  How do you and I deal with these minor disappointments that inevitably come up in any given week?

1. Affirm your own practice of time management.  The fact that I hate wasting time is actually a sign that I take time management seriously.  Does it bother you when someone kills an hour from your day for no good reason?  It should if productivity is a value in your life.
2. Plan more carefully.  While it's true that my eye doctor should have looked at the perscription more carefully before sending me off, it's my own fault for not having an up-to-date perscription.  That's something I can fix.
3. Regroup, then regroup again.  There was a commentary in America magazine a few weeks back about parenting being similar to managing an alien attack.  You have to recalibrate your phaser guns over and over again in order to survive their attacks.  What worked with your oldest child rarely is effective with your second or third.  Dealing with disappointments is very much like this- breath, regroup and get your day back on track.  You can do it.

Regroup and get your day back on track.  You can do it.

4. Remember what matters most in life.  While it's true that Joe, Dr. Mackey and a host of other characters sidetracked my calendar, I got to spend several hours with Cary and the kids and at the end of the day, who else would I want to spend my time with?  In light of eternal salvation, family and friendship, that old advice still stands, "Don't sweat the small stuff."

One more thing- if you happen to pick out new eye glasses, the ones on the top shelf, third over from the right are mine.  Don't even think about it.