We see a lot less of that nowadays. Everyone used to the 5 days a week, do your timesheets grind.
We were ‘lucky’ in the pandemic, I use that word very very lightly of course and in jest. We were allowed to be treated as adults, we were allowed to… drum roll… work from home! The revolution! But slowly over the course of the last five years our freedom is slowly being stripped again. With loud, noisy calls for us to be back in the office, 3, 4 or 5 days a week.
But Principles, they did something different. They did something bold, and brave. Three years ago they made the move from a five day working week, to a four day working week. With NO compressed hours and for the same pay.
We made the switch and we’ve not looked back.
I’ve been with Principles agency just two months, so whilst most of the team are in full swing of a four day week I’m still adjusting.
That might sound a bit daft, adjusting! I’ve worked a 5 day week for 20 years (gulp). Lots of people focus on the day off part, and that is a delight… more on that in a moment. But it is the four day week part that I want to address for a moment.
There is a bunch of practical considerations… half of the office has Fridays off, and half have Mondays off so we’re always here for our clients. It also means that we’re together three days. So we have three days to work together, collaborate, make decisions and align on plans.
Those three days are precious, and it’s why we choose to be in the office together on those days. Here’s what I noticed:
- We made decisions quicker
- We made time for each other face to face, not just another teams message or email flying in
- Productivity didn’t go down, it went up
- There was less time faffing, and more time doing
Shocking. No wonder they made the decision to keep the 4 for 5 days. With one less day, the team learnt to trim the fat: fewer meetings, less procrastination, sharper priorities. And crucially, the promise of a three-day weekend becomes a powerful motivator.
And motivated I am!
My Fridays have become a mixed bag, of seeing friends, house and life admin, taking a little exercise moment for me, whether that’s a reformer class (I”m obsessed and very much in my reformer era) or a walk around the lake. I get to pick the kids up straight from school, and take them both to their Jiu Jitsu class.
I’m not learning a language or picking up a new hobby. I’m just giving myself some space to breathe. My weekends aren’t hurried or filled with jobs while the kids are trashing the house. We‘re together as a family, with all the other (excuse my french) shite out of the way.
This won’t be how I spend my time every week, but it’s right for me, right for my family, right now.
Right now if someone asked me to go back to 5 for 5, no flipping way!
