Staggering statistics
Sometimes that feeling doesn’t stop when you graduate. For many, life after college means the usual 9 to 5 job that many of us can’t wait for the weekend.
And for many, even the weekend is a privilege. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics found that in 2022 27% of individuals and 58% of multiple workers worked on weekends.
While much of this can be attributed to the type of business (food service, retail, etc.), supplemental reporting by the National Bureau of Economic Research found that Americans tend to work longer weeks and more weekends in general than other developed countries.
Think about it. Many employed in the US don’t even take the whole weekend.
This is not a tut-tut to someone who works like this. Taking time off is a privilege. We all have our own financial situation, and sometimes you have to do it to survive. Sometimes just like do it.
But at IWT, we wanted to deconstruct the idea of ”weekend work” and see if we could design a different kind of work week, one that gives us more focus when we’re at work and more rest outside of it.
How the IWT spends its day off
At IWT, we’ve been talking about freedom for over 15 years starting a business which allows you to set your own schedule, get your dream job which gives you autonomy and flexibility, and get your finances in order so you can live life exactly the way you want.
In many ways, 4DWW is an extension of these values.
Throughout the challenge, the team asked themselves, “What is our rich life? What do we want our ideal day or week to look like? And can 4DWW help us get there?”
In other words, we were acceptance of intentionality. That’s what the 4DWW Challenge is all about. We want to see how we can be intentional about how we work—and how we rest.
So I want to share some of the ways a few IWT employees spend their time on their days off.
One thing you’ll notice: We’re as intentional about our days off as we are about how we work. IWT employees are, after all, incredibly driven. We know that when we want to do something, we have to really think about the best ways to do it before we even take the first steps.
Even the way we spend our weekends.
“The extra time to spend together was amazing”
“If you’re familiar with Chicago traffic, you know what a nightmare it is to get anywhere on the weekend. I use my extra weekend to run errands while most people are working. This makes it easier to get around town and usually means grocery stores, etc. are much less crowded.
“Coincidentally, my sister now has Fridays off too and we’ve been doing things together, which has been a lot of fun. Shopping, pedicure, lunch. The extra time to spend together was amazing.
“I’m also currently recovering from surgery and was able to make doctor appointments on Fridays. It’s been really helpful because I don’t have to worry about balancing my schedule to fit in meetings during work hours (that always stresses me out).”–Jessica Rossetti, Student Success Specialist
“My son and I have become closer than we have ever been”
“The 4DWW we tested this summer is invaluable to me.
“Since being diagnosed with cancer earlier this year and undergoing surgery to remove it, I have a whole new outlook on life. I understand that every minute is important and I try to spend as much of it as possible with my family.
“Every week I use an extra day off to spend with my son, one on one, just the two of us. Since it’s like a ‘bonus day’, I never feel guilty like I’m wasting my PTO or losing pay to spend the day doing activities that some may find frivolous.
“The fact that I can spend all day with my son doing everything from swimming, going to the movies, shopping or one of our random ‘left, right, center’ days is something I wouldn’t trade for the world.
“My son and I have become closer than ever and learned much more about each other than we ever would have without these days spent together.
“My extra day was spent making memories!”
–Rosanna Armbrust, Senior Student Success Specialist