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I keep lowkey looking for studies on how much actual free time a person has in a day—really free, subtracting all chores and commuting. I've heard that some peo

by aasasd 8y ago

I keep lowkey looking for studies on how much actual free time a person has in a day—really free, subtracting all chores and commuting. I've heard that some people have timed that and the results were rather surprising compared to the ‘common knowledge,’ but I'd like to have a source to cite.

wojcikstefan 8y ago
To build on top of that, I'd want to see how much of that truly free time is in a "high energy state". What I mean by that is a free time where you're awake/energetic enough to do something meaningful – read a challenging book and take notes, write a thoughtful email to a friend, host a party, try to build a new friendship, etc. On most workdays I find myself so spent that a) I don't want to see people, b) I don't have any mental energy left. I can only do such things on the weekends, but then I'm also fighting with all the chores that have accumulated over the week. A 4-day work week sounds very appealing because of the challenges mentioned above. An extra day with free and high-energy time would be amazing.
- alkonaut 8y ago
  This. My free time at least in winter months is a slow collapse. A day off would give hobby time, home improvement time etc, and do so in a way that doesn’t affect the kids who are in school anyway.
- silveroriole 8y ago
  I can say that for me, working 4 days wasn’t like getting one extra day per week - it was more like getting any actual weekend at all. Saturday used to be “I’m too exhausted to do ANYTHING, let’s stay in”, and Sunday was, like you say, a chore day. On Monday I’d still be tired, and demotivated because my weekend was such a waste. On 4 days I finally feel like I don’t have to spend my weekends preserving my energy. I can actually plan things to do without thinking “oh no, I shouldn’t, that’ll make me too tired for chores/work.” I can have a life! edit: also, a benefit that people don’t tend to consider is that getting certain chores done is much faster on weekdays. You won’t find queues at the shops, bank, opticians, doctors etc on a Friday morning!
eru 8y ago
Of course, the numbers depends greatly on how you organise your affairs; and on how much money you are willing to spend for other to do your remaining chores. (And a bit also on how you count. Does spending time with your kids count as a chore or free time?)

by aasasd 8y ago

wojcikstefan 8y ago

To build on top of that, I'd want to see how much of that truly free time is in a "high energy state". What I mean by that is a free time where you're awake/energetic enough to do something meaningful – read a challenging book and take notes, write a thoughtful email to a friend, host a party, try to build a new friendship, etc. On most workdays I find myself so spent that a) I don't want to see people, b) I don't have any mental energy left. I can only do such things on the weekends, but then I'm also fighting with all the chores that have accumulated over the week. A 4-day work week sounds very appealing because of the challenges mentioned above. An extra day with free and high-energy time would be amazing.

alkonaut 8y ago
This. My free time at least in winter months is a slow collapse. A day off would give hobby time, home improvement time etc, and do so in a way that doesn’t affect the kids who are in school anyway.
silveroriole 8y ago
I can say that for me, working 4 days wasn’t like getting one extra day per week - it was more like getting any actual weekend at all. Saturday used to be “I’m too exhausted to do ANYTHING, let’s stay in”, and Sunday was, like you say, a chore day. On Monday I’d still be tired, and demotivated because my weekend was such a waste. On 4 days I finally feel like I don’t have to spend my weekends preserving my energy. I can actually plan things to do without thinking “oh no, I shouldn’t, that’ll make me too tired for chores/work.” I can have a life! edit: also, a benefit that people don’t tend to consider is that getting certain chores done is much faster on weekdays. You won’t find queues at the shops, bank, opticians, doctors etc on a Friday morning!

eru 8y ago

Of course, the numbers depends greatly on how you organise your affairs; and on how much money you are willing to spend for other to do your remaining chores. (And a bit also on how you count. Does spending time with your kids count as a chore or free time?)