By [Trickdigi]
Six months ago, I hit a wall.
My business was growing, revenue was up, but I was miserable. I was working six days a week, constantly checking email on Sundays, and my brain felt like a browser with 50 tabs open. I was suffering from classic entrepreneurial burnout.
I kept reading headlines about the magical “Four-Day Workweek.” Studies claimed it increased productivity, boosted happiness, and solved world peace.
It sounded too good to be true. As a small business owner, if I don’t work, things don’t get done. I don’t have a massive team to pick up the slack.
But desperation makes you try crazy things. So, I committed to a 30-day experiment: Fridays off. Period.
I thought it would be a month of relaxation and efficiency. Instead, the first two weeks were total chaos.
Here is the honest reality of trying to compress five days of work into four, the mistakes I made, and the strict rules that finally made it work.
The Setup: The “Compressed” Model
There are two ways to do a four-day week:
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The Reduction Model: Work less (e.g., 32 hours) for the same pay.
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The Compression Model: Work the same amount (40 hours), but squeezed into four days.
As a business owner, I couldn’t afford to just do less work. I had to choose the Compression Model.
My New Schedule: Monday through Thursday, 8:00 AM to 6:00 PM (10-hour days). Fridays off.
The Reality Slap: Why Week 2 Was a Nightmare
The first Friday off was glorious. I went for a hike. I didn’t look at my phone. I felt rejuvenated.
Then Monday hit.
Because I hadn’t actually reduced my workload, my Mondays and Tuesdays became unbearable pressure cookers. I felt constantly behind. By Wednesday afternoon, my brain was fried because I was working 10-hour days at full intensity without the usual “water cooler” breaks.
The Breaking Point:
On the second Thursday at 5:00 PM, I still had three major client deliverables due. I had to make a choice: miss the deadlines, or break my own rule and work on Friday.
I ended up working half of Friday, resenting the experiment the entire time. I was ready to quit. The four-day week wasn’t making me more productive; it was just making my four working days more stressful.
The Pivot: The 3 Rules That Saved the Experiment
I realized my mistake: You cannot just remove 20% of your available time without removing 20% of the noise.
I had changed my schedule, but I hadn’t changed my systems.
Before giving up, I implemented three strict rules for Weeks 3 and 4.
Rule 1: “No-Meeting Mondays” and “Deep Work” Mornings
I realized meetings were killing my compressed schedule. If I had three hours of Zoom calls on a Monday, my 10-hour day was ruined before it started.
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The Fix: Mondays are now blocked for zero meetings.
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The Daily Routine: Every day from 8:00 AM to 11:00 AM is sacred “Deep Work” time. My phone is in another room. Slack is closed. This is when the hard tasks get done.
Rule 2: Asynchronous Client Communication
My clients were used to me replying instantly. When I disappeared on Fridays, they panicked.
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The Fix: I set clear boundaries. I updated my email signature and voicemail to state clearly: “Our office hours are Mon-Thurs. Emails received on Friday will be answered Monday morning.”
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The Reality: Most things aren’t emergencies. By forcing clients to wait until Monday, I trained them (and myself) to realize the world wouldn’t end over the weekend.
Rule 3: Ruthless Prioritization (The “One Thing” Rule)
With only four days, I could no longer lie to myself about my to-do list. A list of 20 items was impossible.
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The Fix: Every morning, I identify the Single Most Important Task (SMIT). If I only get that one thing done, the day is a success. Everything else is bonus.
The Data: Before vs. After
Did it actually work once I fixed the systems? I tracked my output and mood for the month before and the month during the experiment.
| Metric | The 5-Day Grind (Before) | The 4-Day Compression (After) |
| Total Hours Worked | ~50 Hours (spread out) | ~42 Hours (intense) |
| Major Tasks Completed | Avg 12 per week | Avg 15 per week |
| Friday Stress Level (1-10) | 8 (Exhausted) | 2 (Relaxed) |
| Sunday “Scaries” | High anxiety for Monday | Low / Excited for Monday |
The Insight: Paradoxically, by working fewer days, I got more major tasks done. Why? Because the “scarcity” of time forced me to stop procrastinating. When you know you have to finish by Thursday at 6 PM, you stop scrolling Twitter.
The Verdict: Is It Sustainable?
I am writing this on a Thursday afternoon. Tomorrow, I will not open my laptop.
Yes, the four-day week is sustainable, but only if you are willing to be incredibly disciplined during those four days.
It is not a “life hack” for laziness. It is a forcing function for efficiency.
My four workdays are harder and more intense than they used to be. I am more tired on Thursday night than I used to be on Friday night.
But the trade-off—having three full days to recover, pursue hobbies, and actually live a life outside of my business—is worth the squeeze.
If you try this, expect the first two weeks to be a disaster. Push through the chaos, fix your systems, and you might find you never want to work a Friday again.
