Slowing down on social

We took the kids to a local farm at the weekend, it has the most epic ice cream parlour imaginable and the waffles are outta this world. But that's not the main reason we went 😂

They have a newly minted indoor play centre, it’s one giant bouncy castle. I played tag with the kids, there was a reflex button pushing type game on the wall. And they had SLIDDDDDESSS, the big kid in me was chomping at the bit. 

I was in heaven, bouncing, jumping and laughing for a solid hour.

After that I felt more myself than I have in months. So I made a commitment to myself that very evening to switch to a 4 day working week. 

And do you know what, I feel really good about that decision. So much so that I have decided to devote a whole newsletter to it this week.

The main reason for me doing this was I feel I wasn’t tapping into my creativity as much and felt like I was on a treadmill of content, sales calls and coaching. Enough was enough.

There is a cheeky little boy who lives inside me and he’s been quite for a while, because he’s been told he needs to act like an adult. Well enough of that nonsense thankyou very much 😂

So I’m slowing down to speed up. 

Here are some of the main benefits (for me at least, and remember I’m writing this for me. Not you. How you decide to run your life is none of my business).

1) Reduced costs - I’m simply not working as many hours in the week so the maths stacks up.

I’d also like to try this with any new employees I take on board. Now it won’t work for everyone. But I think in the age of always on, hybrid and remote working there is a tendency to burn out quickly. I know (from my own experience) this is not conducive to growth. Responding to DM’s at 10pm isn't good for anyone.

2) Better mind body balance - Getting stressed and being on the treadmill all week wasn't enabling me to refresh and check in on myself. I am acutely conscious of my mental health, so when something feels a bit off I know I need to make a change. Doing this will enable me to check in with myself more often and make tweaks to things on the fly.

I am going to spend the time mountain biking, going for more walks and reading. It’s a great way for me to close knowledge gaps and create more future opportunities for myself.

3) An actual increase in productivity - Less time to think and procrastinate. Knowing I have a more condensed week, keeps me hyper-focused (a little stress just at the edges is good). Being more militant with time blocking (I have a Hayley for that) makes this a reality.

4) More time to learn and live - Being more present and actually living rather than working (my dear old dad would often repeat that one to me “son don’t live to work, work to live”) is for me super important for growth. We only have a finite amount of time on the planet and I do not want to spend every day of to working thanks but when I do it better sure as heck be something I LOVE. Not everyone has the opportunity (or won’t create it for themselves) to take advantage of this. My advice to you is dig deep there and ask yourself what is it that’s holding you back?

5) It helps those I serve - By looking after myself I can better serve my family, the charity I work with and the young men I help support and most importantly my clients.

Happier me = happier them and it’s good for all my relationships. Like one giant feedback loop!

6) The big one for me, an increase in creativity - Taking time to connect with myself and do stuff that’s fun and brings me joy is super important for me to tap into my inner child (the source of my creativity). By doing this regularly I can recharge my creative batteries and create more, rather than it feeling like a chore, it feels like a gift again.

Now this ain’t for everyone, but over the coming months and weeks I’ll let you know how this little experiment pans out.

Have you thought about it for you or your employees? And more importantly have you done it? How did it turn out?