The Four-Day Week

By Dr Alex Soojung-Kim Pang

In 2020, I published my book on the four-day week, Shorter: Work Better, Smarter and Less— Here’s How.

I’d worked for two years visiting companies, interviewing founders, talking to academics, and distilling the experience of a hundred companies.

I kicked off the release of the book with a series of events in the UK in February, and returned to the US for the book’s American release in March.

I did one event at a local bookstore before COVID hit. Suddenly, the tour was cancelled. Businesses were on lockdown. And it looked like a terrible time to be writing about the shorter workweek.

But interest in the four-day week didn’t flag, and the movement didn’t slow down. My press tour became all-virtual, and keynotes were on Zoom, but popular interest in the four-day week remained keen.

The pandemic liberated companies to experiment with lots of new things, including shorter working hours.

They found that going remote helped them be more efficient, at a time when their employees were struggling with kids, confinement, and stress— and when everyone was questioning their assumptions about the place of work in their lives.

As founder of Strategy & Rest, I’ve continued studying the movement, advising founders, working with companies to design their own four-day weeks, and talking with journalists writing about the future of work.

It’s clear that nearly two years after Shorter was published, more companies have adopted four-day workweeks than ever.

To continue this article, you can download Alex Soojung-Kim Pang’s report exploring the Four Day Week here.

DBA Members’ Forum: Alex joined us for the first DBA Members’ Forum of 2022, sharing his perspective on the global 4-day week movement. For more information on the Members’ Forum and how you can attend, head here.

Not yet a DBA member? Find out about the many benefits of DBA membership here or get in touch with adam.fennelow@dba.org.uk to discuss what membership could bring to your business.

About: Dr Alex Soojung-Kim Pang

Alex Soojung-Kim Pang is a Silicon Valley-based consultant. Through his company Strategy + Rest, and his trilogy of books— Shorter: Work Better, Smarter and Less— Here’s How (Public Affairs, 2020); Rest: Why You Get More Done When You Work Less (Basic Books, 2016), and The Distraction Addiction (Little Brown , 2013)— Alex shows how companies and individuals can better integrate rest, creativity, and focus into digital-age lives and work.

Dr. Pang’s opinions about the future of work are quoted in the Financial Times, the New York Times, the Washington Post, The Guardian, and other publications. He is also a regular guest on podcasts and radio shows like BBC’s Business Daily and NPR’s Marketplace.

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The Four-Day Week

About: Dr Alex Soojung-Kim Pang