Can you be a 'successful' business and work a four-day week?
Since Christmas, nay, since April 2020 we have been head down keeping busy, and just hoped to God that we'd make it through. You'll be happy to know folks, we're still here (hurrah!) but the result 1) a successful business 2) two burnt-out designers starting to lose the love and creativity for what they do (ah crap). Something had to give.
It's been a mumbling of an idea for some time now - why don't we try a four-day working week? For anyone that has been around here for more than 10 minutes will know, we're alllll about the work-life balance. Whether we achieve it or not is another matter.
There have been gazillions *not a fact* of studies about the benefits of a four-day week, with Iceland being the trailblazer with a study between 2015-2019 showing results of happier, healthier, more productive staff who were off less with illness and burnout. Absolute winner, no? Countries such as Spain, Belgium, Japan, and even the UK are starting to trial the idea within companies. As a small independent business ourselves, we do see it as a part of our duty to try ideas like this on for size. We have the flexibility and capacity to show the big corps how it could be done. There is another way.
So what's it all about? You just work less and get paid the same? Well yes...and no.
The Off Grid four-day week is a bit of a middle ground. We didn't want this change to impact our workload or let any of our clients down, so we opted to work four slightly longer days, to allow one full day off. Our hours have reduced a smidge, but I can honestly say that our creativity and productivity have most definitely gone up. We have been working a four-day week for seven weeks now and we're shocked by the difference it's made already.
No slump day. Let's all be honest with ourselves a minute - this is a safe space - how much work did you do on a Friday afternoon anyway? I'm not saying we can all be productive 100% of the time, and nor should we be, we're not machines. When it's been a full-on creative day and the juice starts to run dry at about 3 pm, rather than waste time trying to push through, or stare at Pinterest, we move on to another task. we'll update our accounts, or reply to some emails or write a proposal. It's all about working smarter, not harder. Knowing you have a big juicy day off at the end of the week is a shining light.
More creative. I don't know about anyone else out there who has a job that means being creative for at least 70% of the day, it is mentally very draining. It's the most incredible job, and sometimes when you're in the flow, it's pure joy, but a tired mind is not a creative mind.
Brain space. Whether it's having a longer break away from work, resting better, or feeling like we're getting more 'life' and adventure back into our weeks, our minds feel so much more open again. We're designing better, we're handling our workload better, and we've even started having ideas and inspiration for new prints and designs in the Goods From Off Grid shop.
More time outdoors. We have Fridays as our days off, and those days have now become 'adventure Fridays'. Not saying that we head out for a full day hiking, swimming or camping every Friday - but it's an option. Some Fridays have just looked like a slow morning stroll with lunch on a hill followed by an afternoon pottering in the allotment. Whatever we're doing, you can pretty much guess it will be outside and away from a screen. Joyous.
But the big question on everyone's lips will be money. There is an unfortunately ingrained capitalist notion that working 'less' will mean earning less - it's probably the very notion that has held us back from doing it until now. How can you be/look successful if you're off having a lovely time once a week?! Well, that depends on what you think success looks like, pal. We're less than two months into this, so our earnings may not fully reflect the change yet. But we'll take another gander in six, twelve, eighteen months and see what cash facts we can offer! So far, so good.
We're almost shocked at the almost immediate difference we've felt, and if and if you've been thinking of making a change to how you work, we hope you'll give it a go. And we'd love to hear anyone else's experience of it.