Family Gathering

It’s been a while since the Bailey clan all got together (minus the youngest currently experiencing Korea). A braai at my middle sister’s new place was as good an occasion as any to get the brood together. The fact that we haven’t gotten together since my father’s birthday last year, made me realise just how insane everyone’s schedules are. The last year alone has seen me move my family into our new home and experience significant lifestyle changes.

The reduced workweek revolution is currently underway and if you’re not reaping the benefits, it may be time for a career change. One of the major benefits is more time, more time to spend with your family and loved ones. The fact that we squeeze the majority of our most precious personal moments into two days a week, should be alarming enough.

We’ve literally gotten to the point where we can only celebrate major life events on a Saturday or a Sunday.

Reading that sentence just blew my mind. We have this illusion of freedom and choice, but with Monday to Friday spoken for, it’s nothing but a cruel joke. We live in a society where we plan life around work and not the other way around. As South Africans the alternative is to not work at all, which is a sad reality for a great majority of us.

At this rate, I may only ever see my family together again at the next main major life event. Since there is only one wedding pending, a funeral may be a sure bet. It’s time we started to prioritise the things that matter and we won’t be able to do that efficiently on a five-day week. Any other suggestions?

Tags

4 Day Week SA, INFJ, 4 Day Week, Future Of Work, Work Time Reduction, Reduced Workweek Revolution, Wellbeing In The Workplace

David-John Wayne Bailey is an INFJ from Cape Town, a proud pioneer pilot participant of 4 Day Week SA and an advocate of a four-day week for everyone working in South Africa.