Friday Afternoons
During my first post-grad job as a Internal Audit Consultant at EY, Fridays were the day I waited for every second of the week and when they arrived, they seemed to drag on and the weekend never came.
Now that I have a job I'm passionate about and an autonomous schedule, Friday afternoons have taken on a whole other meaning. No longer am I exhausted and waiting for 5pm (or usually much later) to come so I could commute home and pass out. Instead I'm home right now writing this and woke up at noon today...so those days of longing are over.
Today Friday afternoons are when I make time* for new projects, being creative, and just turning the world off and getting stuff done. My social streams are generally a loud, hot mess and anything I need to read on the content side can wait until the weekend when the dust settles.
The way I've set up my schedule is that Monday-Thursday I generally release everything I need to so that by the time Friday afternoon rolls around, I have nothing that needs to be written and released immediately.
I'm waiting for closing prices and checking emails every once and a while, but for the most part it's a laid-back day where I regroup and get ready for a weekend of charting.
I've got a list of side projects that I want to work on, so Friday afternoons are when I do them. For example, today I'm going to record my first piece of solo video content for our YouTube channel, write a few educational posts I have on my list, and finish creating our new chartbook notes format that we'll be rolling out this weekend.
Maybe after that I'll go get some ice cream and take a nap, who knows. It's my time, and I reserve the right to use it however I feel best helps me achieve my goals that week.
Last week I spent it filming with Real Vision and then working with a co-worker on a new piece of weekly content that we're adding for our Institutional Clients. Next week...well, I'll assess next week when I get there!
My point is, everyone is as busy as they've ever been and we often forget to create time for ourselves to think creatively, tackle large projects, or just refresh our minds/bodies.
If you don't have time like this set aside, I'd encourage you to go find your own "Friday afternoon". I think you'll be surprised how much value it can add both personally and professionally.
Let me know what you think about the subject.
~Bruni
*Notice I said making time and not finding time. You don't find time. Life is about choices. If it's a priority you'll make time for it, as Phil Pearlman said on the most recent Money Game Podcast (No Such Thing As Work-Life Balance).