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What I Learned from Working 32 Hours a Week

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Re: What I Learned from Working 32 Hours a Week

#21

Post by lettergram »

seanalltogether wrote: post #14

I've often felt that a 5 day work week is about availability , not raw productivity. I could easily compress all of my weeks work into 30 hours or less, but that's not what my managers and clients value. What they value is the fact that I'm making progress on my tasks, and that my reachability is not preventing anyone else (people above me or below me) from making progress on their tasks

Never thought about that, but availability is probably closer to what employers are looking for.

One thing my colleagues always value that I’m willing to respond at any time. It means most people come to me with their problems and my value to the business has increased (removing blockers from others).

Re: What I Learned from Working 32 Hours a Week

#22

Post by wojcikstefan »

aasasd wrote: post #16

I keep lowkey looking for studies on how much actual free time a person has in a day— really free, subtracting all chores and commuting. I've heard that some people have timed that and the results were rather surprising compared to the ‘common knowledge,’ but I'd like to have a source to cite.

To build on top of that, I'd want to see how much of that truly free time is in a "high energy state". What I mean by that is a free time where you're awake/energetic enough to do something meaningful – read a challenging book and take notes, write a thoughtful email to a friend, host a party, try to build a new friendship, etc.

On most workdays I find myself so spent that a) I don't want to see people, b) I don't have any mental energy left. I can only do such things on the weekends, but then I'm also fighting with all the chores that have accumulated over the week.

A 4-day work week sounds very appealing because of the challenges mentioned above. An extra day with free and high-energy time would be amazing.

Re: What I Learned from Working 32 Hours a Week

#23

Post by eru »

aasasd wrote: post #16

I keep lowkey looking for studies on how much actual free time a person has in a day— really free, subtracting all chores and commuting. I've heard that some people have timed that and the results were rather surprising compared to the ‘common knowledge,’ but I'd like to have a source to cite.

Of course, the numbers depends greatly on how you organise your affairs; and on how much money you are willing to spend for other to do your remaining chores.

(And a bit also on how you count. Does spending time with your kids count as a chore or free time?)

Re: What I Learned from Working 32 Hours a Week

#24

Post by chucksmash »

treis wrote: post #19
philk10 wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeh, he was including a lunch break which is not in the paid hours

It's still not 32. 7 to 5 is 10 hours. Subtracting 1 is 9. Times 4 is 36.

Maybe subtracting two per day, or the "leave by five" had an implied "at the very latest." Surely he did the math before putting the number in the title of his blog post.

Re: What I Learned from Working 32 Hours a Week

#25

Post by itamarst »

wojcikstefan wrote: post #17

I'm very grateful that I came across this article. For a long time now I've been struggling with balancing work and life. I've recently started playing with the idea of exchanging a pay cut for a 4-day work week (I haven't brought it up to my employer yet though). It seems obvious now, but I haven't previously considered using my vacation days to do a test run. Most of the points in the article are solid, but the one…

From personal experience working 4 days a week, and talking to others who have done so, the change to shorter hours is definitely a forcing function: you end up prioritizing better and planning better because you have to.

I talk about the contrast between the "work longer!" attitude and the "work less hours but still produce the same" here https://codewithoutrules.com/2018/02/11/working-long-hours/ and here https://codewithoutrules.com/2016/08/25/the-01x-programmer/

Re: What I Learned from Working 32 Hours a Week

#26

Post by wojcikstefan »

seanalltogether wrote: post #14

I've often felt that a 5 day work week is about availability , not raw productivity. I could easily compress all of my weeks work into 30 hours or less, but that's not what my managers and clients value. What they value is the fact that I'm making progress on my tasks, and that my reachability is not preventing anyone else (people above me or below me) from making progress on their tasks

This is a good point. If you're a go-to expert in some category at your workplace, your availability and responsiveness might be too valuable to give up.

Re: What I Learned from Working 32 Hours a Week

#27

Post by dyeje »

seanalltogether wrote: post #14

I've often felt that a 5 day work week is about availability , not raw productivity. I could easily compress all of my weeks work into 30 hours or less, but that's not what my managers and clients value. What they value is the fact that I'm making progress on my tasks, and that my reachability is not preventing anyone else (people above me or below me) from making progress on their tasks

Doesn't that problem disappear if everybody switches to the same shortened schedule?

Re: What I Learned from Working 32 Hours a Week

#28

Post by eru »

kwrobel wrote: post #18
toomuchtodo wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I suggest not working for employers who attempt to dictate how you use your PTO without a legal leg to stand on.

In some countries it is mandatory by law to have 14 days in one block per year.

One finance job I worked in had that regulation. (But it wasn't a general thing in that country.)

Re: What I Learned from Working 32 Hours a Week

#29

Post by MiddleEndian »

seanalltogether wrote: post #14

I've often felt that a 5 day work week is about availability , not raw productivity. I could easily compress all of my weeks work into 30 hours or less, but that's not what my managers and clients value. What they value is the fact that I'm making progress on my tasks, and that my reachability is not preventing anyone else (people above me or below me) from making progress on their tasks

This is why working remotely is fantastic for work life balance. I can do my personal tasks, travel, visit my family, etc. and still be available.

Re: What I Learned from Working 32 Hours a Week

#30

Post by mamon »

chrisseaton wrote: post #6
sokoloff wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've never minded when my employees do this (and can't imagine why I would). I've also done it myself fairly often because of the PTO rollover limits. You've earned the vacation days. If your vacations happen to be every Friday for 8 Fridays in a row because that's what you prefer, that's none of my business.

Some employers ask you to take holiday in longer blocks because they want people to be able to properly relax and recharge and they think you can't do that in just blocks of one day. (Not saying I agree, but that's what they say.)

Some jurisdictions even require it, e.g. in my country you get 26 vacations days per year, but you are expected to take at least 10 of them continouosly (which, if you add weekends typically results in 16 days without work)
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