Senior Skip Fridays (aka “How I negotiated a 4-day work week for 8 months…twice”)
Did you ever have a Senior Skip Day in high school? I did.
And I actually went to school on senior skip day because our school theater director said we would be in trouble if we missed rehearsals. I guess I’ve just always been a rule follower.
But, in 2017, I realized my window of 1:1, unscheduled time with my daughter was closing. By August, she would be in Kindergarten. And then we would both be held accountable to an attendance policy (her at school and me at work). And so, I got creative at work.
I scheduled a meeting with my VP and presented a problem to him. I have worked and sacrificed so much time for the company in the last five years. And, now? I needed a little flexibility and freedom. And so, I presented the idea of a temporary 4-day work week. Monday-Thursday, I would be working as I usually do. But, on Fridays, I would not accept meetings. Instead, I would drop off my son at daycare, and my daughter and I would spend the mornings together, doing what she wanted. She still took a nap from 1-3 PM, so I would spend that time, catching up on what came in during the morning. And then, around 3:30, I would close up for the week, but still, be monitoring via my phone for any “fire drills”.
And he agreed!
And, let me tell you. IT WAS THE BEST. I sit here years later, reflecting on this short window of time we had, with extreme gratitude for those Fridays. We had so much fun. We had breakfasts out at fancy places like Sublime Doughnuts. We biked on the Beltline, which was still being developed (as were her biking skills). We went to the American Girl store to get lunch and have Rebecca’s hair styled. We had lunches out just the two of us! And so much pool time. And you know what? Sometimes she asked to go to school! She loved Montessori School and sometimes she wanted to spend Friday at school. And so, on those days, I worked instead as usual.
I successfully did this for 8 months and then, when she started Kindergarten, I resumed a normal work week again. In thinking back to how I pulled this off, I have some key takeaways:
I not only presented a problem to my boss, but I also presented my ideal solution. No one (to my knowledge) had done this at my very large company before. Managers expect to be dumped on, but they don’t know how to solve your problems. My problem? I wanted time with my child. I managed my own success by clearly stating my problem and my ideal solution, with an example of how it could work and be successful. This was a temporary problem the company could help me solve, keep me as a happy employee, and not pay me anymore to retain me.
I did not hide this from my team. I communicated to my team what this new arrangement was, how it was a temporary situation, and to always call my cell if they need some urgent.
I am very responsive at the office, but I double-downed on those efforts during this time. Perception is reality. By appearing to respond to DMs, emails, and calls in a “less than 24 hours” timeframe, my clients didn’t really see any difference.
And guess what…two years later when my son was a “senior” at Montessori school? I got to do it all over again. His days were different, too! He wanted to go to the zoo and the aquarium, walk outside together, build forts, and have so many amazing picnics in our neighborhood park.
Those two time periods were so special.
And that time was fleeting. Because before I knew it, the last one had graduated from Montessori school and was moving on to Kindergarten. I cherish those Fridays still to this day.
