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May 9, 2018

33. The 5 Big Benefits of Being a 4-Day Work Week Parent

In today’s episode we’re going to talk about how a 4-Day Work Week Lifestyle can help you to be a better parent and a happier person. There’s a lot you can get done on a Friday when you’re not at work, whether it’s being more present with your partner, enjoying some alone time, or just doing errands so you have more time off during the weekend.

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In today’s episode we’re going to talk about how a 4-Day Work Week Lifestyle can help you to be a better parent and a happier person. There’s a lot you can get done on a Friday when you’re not at work, whether it’s being more present with your partner, enjoying some alone time, or just doing errands so you have more time off during the weekend.

 

 

E-BOOK

 

GAME PLAN

 

 

Transcript

You ever find yourself listening to one of your kids and they're talking you and they're telling you something that's very important to them. A bout halfway through, you realize you're not really present and you wish you were. There's this little voice that goes off in your in your head, maybe it's just, Man, I wish I was a better parent. I should be listening. This person's trying to tell me something that's hugely important to them. And at the same time, you're like, Oh, my God. I can't take this anymore. I can't play lightning Mcqueen cars anymore and be Sally with the cone on her head. I had to do that when I was a kid for my boy. I can't just only be a parent. I need to have some identity of my own. When you have time and if you create time for a four day, work week lifestyle, there's five main things that I've seen that help me be a better parent and be a happier person. The first thing is that Friday is my day or our day in the case of my wife and I. On Friday, I'm not Francisco's dad. My wife is not Luna's mom.

 

As long as the kids are in school, I'm Wade. My wife gets to be Rosana. It's pretty awesome. We get to be ourselves. We get to do things we enjoy. Very often people will tell you, you need to grow up and you need to put away the past and that stuff. Well, there are certain things I still like doing. I still like going to the beach. I still like dating my wife. I like being able to have that relationship. I don't want to just be my wife's parenting partner. I want to be that person that she remembers that we started dating. I want to be that. And being able to have Friday, whether it's me by myself, playing beach volleyball and getting hang out with my friends, or whether it's us doing something as a couple going to the beach, I or we get to do our thing. And that allows us a chance to recharge so that when we come back on Saturday and Sunday and we're present with the kids or even Friday night, we really have the energy, we've gotten a recharge because we've gotten to be ourselves. Second thing is, if they don't leave, you can't miss them.

 

This is something I always tell my kids, friends, when it's time to go at the end of the play date and they're not going yet, say, Hey, you don't leave, we can't miss you. See how it works is you leave and we miss you, then we want you to come back. But if you're always around your kids all the time, and I did this probably for about a five or six year period, I did not have the four day work week. I wasn't taking time off. I wasn't taking care of my needs as an individual. I began to resent being around the kids and blaming them for things that weren't their fault, like, I'm not happy because of them, or I don't have enough free time because of them. Now it was because of me. I didn't manage my time well. You need to get some time away from your kids to be able to want to be around your kids or family or whoever it is. Third, on most Fridays, guaranteed babysitter. If your kids are in school, there's babysitter. You have time during the day, as long as you're not going somewhere really far, to be able to do things either as an individual or as a couple or however you want to do or hang out with your friends.

 

Having that there, being able to give you the freedom to, again, just not worry about, can you afford a babysitter? You've already paid for it with your taxes, or if you're paying for private school, it's there. The kids are being taken care of. They're as safe as they're going to be. You can really just go do your own thing because you got everything else taken care of. It's a great way to have time uninterrupted and without worrying or freaking out about, are the kids okay? Because you know they're going to be okay. Now, I don't like to do errands on Fridays, but if you have time on Fridays and you need to get certain things done, errands get done a lot quicker on Fridays. Now, if any of you all seen the movie Old School, there's the part where Ferrell talks about going to Bed Bath and Beyond, and maybe he's going to go by Best Buy. It's like this sad commentary about that's what he's doing with his Saturday. Aaron's, for the most part, aren't that fun. Some people like shopping. I'm more of a hunter. I like to get stuff done and come back.

 

But at the end of the day, most people are not out in the stores on Fridays. They're at work. Getting things done happens a lot quicker. Again, frees you up to really have Saturday and Sunday be a true weekend, not Saturday running chores and going between kid stuff and Sunday just resting up for Monday to do it all over again. Then fifth, you can truly take the day off. What I mean by that is people very often just say, You know what? I just need time. I just need a day. I don't want to do an errand. I don't want to go to the beach. I don't want anything. I just want five, six, seven hours where I don't have to do anything. I have no idea what I'm going to do. I might just stare into space. I might go on Facebook or social media for a while. I might play my PlayStation. I might just whatever. It doesn't matter. Having that freedom to not have an agenda and to just relax. Being able to do that when you have that four day work week freedom and Friday comes around is a huge piece.

 

So all of this is about being able to be more present as a parent and being able to be a better parent and more energized and enthusiastic about seeing your kids and seeing your family. But it comes from a basic concept of getting a break, getting some time for yourself or for yourself or your group as a couple and being able to just step away from being a parent, get to experience life a little bit how it used to be, and then go back in and enjoy being with your kids, being present with your kids, knowing that actually pretty soon they'll reach an age where they're really not as interested in hanging out with you. There's a window to enjoy them. And after a while, they're going to be off on their own anyway. So I hope you find this helpful. If you are not yet working a four day work week, there's a couple of ways you can get there, whether you're an entrepreneur or an employee or a business owner. And all of it starts with having some a plan. Now, what I've done is, over the years, I looked back, how did I get there?

 

It took me 20 years to create a consistent and sustainable four day work week where I work a four day work week, 85, 90, 95 % of the time depends on the year. Sometimes I spend a little more time on projects. But to be able to do that, you have to have some plan. You have to have some way that you're putting in order how you're going to do that. If you go to 4day gameplan. Com, there is a tool there's it's available in a written form and a software form to help you create your game plan. Again, mine took me 22 years. It should not take you that long. I started mine way back when there was a lot less technology. Freelancing was a lot more difficult. Working from home was a lot less common. Today, that's very common. There's so many different ways you can get there. Go ahead and go to 4day gameplan. Com if you want to create your own game plan. As always, send me questions or comments. If there's anything I can help you with, let me know. As always, I look forward to helping you make more money and less time.

 

Do what you do best so you can create the life you most desire for you, your friends, your family, and your loved ones. Thank you.

Wade GaltProfile Photo

Wade Galt

Author, Podcast Host & 3-Day Weekend Coach for Entrepreneurs & Employees

PROFESSIONALLY

With over 30 years of experience working with entrepreneurs, I teach fundamentally sound strategies to help people Make More Money… In Less Time… Doing What They Do Best.
• I help Employees, Entrepreneurs & Business Owners create a sustainable 3-Day Weekend lifestyle.
• Insurance Agency Owners follow my strategies for sales process implementation plus recruiting & accountability enforcement.
• I've been a successful software company founder and owner for over 20 years.

VOCATIONALLY & SPIRITUALLY...
I help people connect with the divinity within, so they can
1. Receive Guidance and Support from the Divine to Create the Life They Most Desire
2. Love Themselves the Way the Divine Loves Us
3. Love Others the Way the Divine Loves Us

AUTHOR, SPEAKER & COACH
I've led retreats and personal growth workshops, authored numerous books on spirituality, personal growth, finance, parenting, business growth & more.

MY BACKGROUND
Pulling from 15 years' experience as a productive employee and over 15 years as a software company founder & owner, corporate consultant, sales process implementation coach, accountability expert, recruiter of superstar talent, provider of mental health counseling (psychology) services, life coach and 3-day weekend entrepreneur - I teach others to create the life they most desire personally & professionally.

As a former Fortune 50 corporation software project leader and sales & management trainer, I've been a lifestyle solopre… Read More