Six takeaways from the magic of our (almost) 4-day work weeks

Four-day work weeks have taken the world by storm. They have been tested, trialled, and implemented in different variations – ours included. 

At Truesix, we’ve had 4-day work weeks during the summer season for a few years now. We get about three months of sun and warmth in Latvia, and life is too short to miss out on it. The summer of 2023 was a bit busy for us, and to experience the bliss of 4-day work weeks while still keeping up with all the work, our team decided to have every other Friday off instead. 

The summer of 2023 eventually came to an end, but the new work schedule did not. Seeing the benefits of two extra days off every month and how little it impacted our work capacity (spoiler: it didn’t, really), our co-founders, Julia and Krista, said: “So be it. We’ll have every other Friday off from now on.”

I know what you may be thinking – it’s a sweet life at Truesix. And you’re right. But this article won’t be a brag session. Instead, I’ll share six takeaways from our experience. 

I warn you – after reading this, you may want to have every other Friday off, too. 

Work matters, but so does play

This title not only encapsulates why our company adopted its current work schedule but also reflects the overall work philosophy at Truesix. 

We’ve always tried to maintain a healthy work-life balance – encouraging each other to take well-deserved vacations and rest days, and to avoid working while sick or taking on overtime. One’s road to burnout is shorter than it may seem, and recovery can be a lengthy process. 

But it’s not just about avoiding burnout. When employees are happy and well-rested, they tend to be more efficient, exhibit sharper focus, and demonstrate greater creativity. This brings us to our first takeaway:

#1 More time off = more energy to work

Yes, two additional off days per month translate to about 16 fewer working hours per month. And if you look at it from a yearly perspective, with 52 weeks per year and every other Friday off, ideally, we get 26 extra off days per year. While some may argue that it’s a loss for the company, our experience paints a different picture:

• We don’t get less work done, but if we do, the difference is nominal.
• Coming back after a three-day weekend, we feel more energized and ready to dive into work than after the regular Saturday-to-Sunday setting.
• Knowing that it’s a “short” week adds motivation to get the work done and have a proper Friday off.

Hence, we still work hard, but we also permit ourselves to rest hard. And it pays off. 

#2 It’s the perfect time to schedule appointments

I asked my colleagues to share what they usually do with their every-other-Friday-off. While the answers were different (and I’ll share them in the article a bit later), I noticed a pattern 

– a p p o i n t m e n t s.

Whether it’s a health-related procedure or a visit to a beauty salon, extra off days are ideal for it for several reasons. First, daytime bookings are easier to secure, avoiding the after-work rush for your favorite specialist.

Second, some appointments are unavailable on weekends or evenings, requiring you to take time off work or adjust your schedule anyway.

#3 It allows you to focus on yourself

Our team cherishes the every-other-Friday-off setting as an opportunity to engage in personally fulfilling activities. 

As everybody else is likely at work, it means that we get a day to spend doing something only we want or need. 

Here’s a glimpse of how the free Fridays look to each of us:

• Krista spends her mornings slowly savouring coffee in one of her favourite cafes, alongside reading a book or knitting, and meets her mom friends, who are more than happy to hang out during the day. She also enjoys a good series or movie at home.
• Ieva often plans some beauty procedures for that day and goes to her summer house to have a long weekend outside the city.
• Viesturs enjoys uninterrupted time (because everyone else is at work) to spend with a good book, TV series, or playing computer games.
• I love to start my day with a group training session at the gym (not an early one, though), have a slow breakfast, knit while watching some easy-to-follow series in the background, and get outside the city in the early afternoon if possible.
• Julia enjoys slow days at home… working. She shared that as her Fridays usually involve scheduled calls, it’s easier to keep them rather than reschedule. As a mentor for several startups, she frequently conducts mentoring sessions as well.

#4 You’ll be tempted to do some work

Julia’s confession of working on our every other Friday off leads us to the fourth takeaway – the temptation to work is (unexpectedly) real. 

We have noticed several cases of how the work gets to you on our free Fridays:

1. The workload is heavy, and another 8 hours of work ARE crucial for everyone involved. While we don’t have a specific agreement in place for this, there are weeks or even months when we’re all heads down in work. And if getting things done requires working on the free Fridays, so be it. 
2. A client presents an urgent request. This happens occasionally. Yet the benefit of taking Fridays off is that requests usually come in on other days of the work week. However, if the request is truly urgent, we do make an exception and handle it. 
3. The “I’ll just check my inbox” trap. There’s always something waiting for you in the inbox. But chances are it can wait until Monday. 
4. You just cannot stop thinking about a client, campaign, task, [your option here]. And if something is running through your head, preventing you from enjoying your off time, it may be easier just to sit down and address it.

Speaking from my own experience, I have used the free Friday as a “just in case” workday. This is especially evident in weeks when I’ve been less productive or haven’t completed everything I planned to do. However, chances are that in such weeks, I need the extra day off A LOT. And not allowing myself to rest is counterproductive. 

#5 You can easily turn it into a little vacay

The every-other-Friday-off setting is a great way to incorporate small vacations into our work lives. 

A two-day getaway is nice, but a three-day trip already feels like a small vacation (Friday, Saturday, and Sunday). Throw in one more day (Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday), and you get four days off work to help you restart, without being away for too long. 

All members of the Truesix team have used this little vacation hack at least once, and for some, it has become a regular practice. 

I usually go on city breaks, visiting friends who live abroad, or attending concerts. That way, I can take my mind off work completely while not using too much of my paid time off.

#6 It can help your employees make important decisions

This takeaway is solely dedicated to our fantastic team member, Ieva. She’s been a content marketing specialist and writer at Truesix for seven and a half years. She’s also a mom of two girls and an avid traveller. 

As she became a mom, Ieva decided to transition to part-time work at Truesix to have more time to spend with her loved ones and run all the errands that moms typically have to manage. After some time, she increased the number of her workdays but continued to work part-time. 

When our team implemented the every-other-Friday-off schedule, Ieva began to see how this arrangement might enable her to return to working full-time again, and she eventually did it. 

Here’s to adding more life to our days

The privilege of having extra days off every month is undeniable, and it's something we all sincerely appreciate. However, it was also a conscious decision made by our co-founders after a trial run of the setting and weighing the pros and cons. 

We still manage to do our best, deliver top-notch services to our clients, and slowly but steadily grow our company. And perhaps adding more life to our days – including more time off work – is the key to it.

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