On Weekends — A note
This article is from an email I sent to the Design team at Clear almost a year back. It had been just a month since I joined the team. This was during the uncertainties of the 2nd wave of Covid19 in India. I could see a pattern of folks working on the weekends either due to unclear priorities and deadlines or as a means to escape from the reality of the pandemic. And both of these reasons were unhealthy to say the least.
While it did help set the right expectation, this had to be put into practice. And I had to remind everyone from time to time. And I’m happy to say that it DID bring about a change. It is truly rewarding when the team-members started acknowledging this…There was a visible shift in their perception towards work.
The recommendations at the end of the mail are also a year old…but you get the gist :)
The email:
“A new study from Stanford found that productivity per hour declines sharply when the workweek exceeds 50 hours, and productivity drops off so much after 55 hours that there’s no point in working any more. This make Weekends highly important to take a break, unwind and recuperate. Even people who consider their job as “fun” “hobby” or “something they enjoy” need to take a break from whatever they do throughout the week.
I request each and everyone of you to take your weekends ‘seriously’. Please relax, unwind, pursue your hobbies, connect with your loved ones and energise. this also helps in beating the Monday Blues. A lot of times people dread Mondays because, they have been unable to take their minds off work over the weekend. I request all managers to ensure your team members are not working on the weekends unless there’s an absolute pants on fire situation and take a stand when communicating the same upstream. If any of you feel overworked or are being requested to work on weekends/holidays, please feel ‘safe’ and free to reach out to me.
One thing that has helped me start Mondays on a high note is to prepare for it on Sunday evenings. As I end my Sunday, I ensure my study table is clean, laptop is on charging, notebook and pen are laid besides the keyboard and mouse. I take out clothes for Monday and keep them on the chair (even throughout lockdown I’ve preferred to wear comfortable yet office clothes during office hours — its a productivity hack that worked for me).
On that note, have a productive Friday and a very happy and safe weekend.
Some recommendations for the weekend, if you like:
Watch — “Mitchells v/s the Machines” on Netflix
Watch — “Begin Again” on Netflix
Book Recommendation — “Anxious People” by Fredrick Backman — I just finished this one. Its a fun and light read. If anyone wants a more serious one, I’m currently reading “Predictably Irrational” by Dan Airely
Music Recommendation — https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6YgHmQPa3KwbTLzbgAmdVH?si=tJKLTADeStigJfNWRbxsjw&nd=1
Play Board Games — https://boardgamearena.com/welcome
You can also doodle/sketch. It’s a great stress buster and brings a lot of joy.
Set up a video call with extended family/friends
