Most of us feel our weekends are insufficient to accomplish everything that we want to; we tend to over-plan and underachieve. On Sunday evening, we wish we had relaxed more, completed more errands and spent more time with family and friends. If a weekend involves long-distance travel, we tend to leave from work on Friday afternoon and return home exhausted on Sunday evening.
When we return to work on Monday, we are hung-over from the out-of-work rhythm of the weekend and gain momentum during the day. We are at peak energy levels during Tuesday and Wednesday. Once we pass ‘hump day’, we long for a break. By Thursday afternoon, we feel drained and begin to look forward to the weekend. Our energy levels and thus our productivities tend to be lower on Friday as we wrap up our workweek.
Every week, we crave a mid-week break—an opportunity to reenergize during the middle of the week. In response, I present the concept of Wednesday Afternoon Time-off. In essence, this concept involves leaving work early, say at around 3:00pm, and taking a break from routine life.
We can use this time-off from the routine to catch-up with errands, devote time for family and friends, eat out, read a book, visit the beach, relax or to just to arrive at home early. This brief time-off will render us energized and recharged for higher productivity during the last two days of the workweek. Additionally, this break gives us something to look forward to at the middle of the week.
I have practiced this idea of mid-week time-offs during the past few weeks and find the experience amazing. My workplace appreciates the higher energy levels on Thursday and Friday. The two hours of work I miss on Wednesdays are easily compensated for by the extra time I devote to work on other weekdays.
I encourage you to try this practice by blocking off time on your calendar, planning work around leaving work early on Wednesday afternoon and getting a break. I would love to hear about your experience.
Excellent article! I had never thought of the rejuvenative qualities of a mid-week vacation. I’m going to try this, and I’ll let you know how it turns out.
Sorry, but your chart is inaccurate. It doesn’t reflect the loss of (work) productivity when you took the time off on Wednesday. If we leave at 3:00, for some of us that means missing 2 hours of work and for some of us it means missing more. Productivity is lost on the day you take the time off.
This is a great idea! When I managed another business (not my own), I used to take Wednesday afternoons off. I agree with you. I really noticed the difference during the remainder of the week. You have a believer! Thank you for the reminder.
Interesting one!!! Need to work on this to make out the difference. Hope, it works(Y). Thank you:)
I wish there was an extra day in between Saturday and Sunday — that’s what we need.