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Happy July! I hope you all had a wonderful holiday! We are halfway through the year, now in Q3. As we strive for enhanced productivity and organization within our team, I wanted to address the importance of effectively managing our calendars and the Four-Day Work Week.
Each team member is responsible for fulfilling their work commitments within the allocated four-day work week. This requires efficient time management, prioritization, and effective communication to ensure all tasks are completed on schedule.
If a conflict or overlapping priority arises from the 4DWW, please approach that situation with a proactive and solution-oriented mindset. I encourage open and respectful communication to address conflicts, find compromises, and support one another. I am here to assist you in resolving any challenges that may arise.
Below are pro tips for optimizing your calendar management:
Promptly update your calendar whenever new tasks, meetings, or events arise.
Respect your colleague’s boundaries. Before scheduling meetings or requesting their time, check their availability to avoid conflicts.
Block focus time on your calendar - Add a Slack emoji status or pause notifications.
Block healthy breaks on your calendar.
Leverage the power of shared company calendars and policies as productivity tools.
Each 4DWW day off must be added to the GP Vacation & Travel Calendar based on what your team has created for you.
This is not a calendar maintained or owned by one person but a company-wide calendar.
Each team needs to be able to manage the 4DWW for themselves and ensure backups are in place. Please note: 4DWW is at the manager’s discretion.
Focusing on accountability and productivity is crucial rather than solely fixating on individual days off. (Unless you are scheduling your own unlimited PTO).
Lean on resources when formulating the best and most productive 4DWW calendar cadence for your team:
– Danielle Alavian
Noteworthy
Announcements, happenings, tidbits and other notables
Employee Profile/GP Success Stories
Ben Bower's 15-year work anniversary is July 1, 2023
Tucker Bowe's 8-year work anniversary is July 1, 2023
Let's give them a big round of applause — thank you!Coming Up
July paydays will be the 14th and 31st
Birthdays
Dominique Gageant's birthday is July 4th
Scott Everett's birthday is July 12th
Josh Hays' birthday is July 18th
Caitlyn Shaw's birthday is July 24th
Big Welcome to DPReview's Team
Gear Patrol has recently acquired DPReview, a leading authority and community for Digital Photography, from Amazon.com. We're thrilled to have you join us!
Fast Five with Grace Cooper
Where do you live now and where are you originally from?
I’m originally from Northern Virginia about 10 miles outside DC, but I’ve been living in Missouri the past couple of years to get my graduate degree. My boyfriend and I just moved to Fort Collins, CO in January (go Nuggets!), and I am finally adjusted to the elevation after six months.What's your favorite thing to do on Saturday morning?
The town we live near is very cute, so I love going to brunch at our favorite spot, The Ginger and Baker, and then doing a little window shopping and exploring. There is usually ice cream involved at some point, despite how full I am from brunch.
Is there something you've been obsessed with lately?
I’m a first-time gardener this year, so I’ve mostly been desperately willing my plants to grow. I’ve planted some herbs, tomatoes, lettuce and sunflowers. If anyone has tips, please let me know! I’m also trying to get back into drawing, which I did a lot before grad school.How do you stay motivated or energized for work?
I try to switch up my location whenever I can, whether that’s going to a cute coffee shop, sitting out on my balcony or just finding a different spot in my apartment. Having that sort of mental or physical commute to another place helps me feel refreshed and refocused.What's your Myers-Briggs personality?
I alternate between INFJ and ENFJ, depending on when I take it!
Where are you currently working from?
I am trying to spend less time working from my couch and more time at my desk. I also have a walking pad that I try to use everyday for a little bit while I work. Not featured is a (distant) view of the mountains from my window!
Inspiration: MIT Sloan Management Review 4DWW Andrew Barnes, the founder of Perpetual Guardian (New Zealand's largest corporate trustee company), is also a co-founder of 4 Day Week Global and the author of the book titled The 4 Day Week (Piatkus, 2020). Barnes discussed the experiments and their discoveries at Work/23, an MIT Sloan Management Review symposium held in May 2023. However, he couldn't address all the event participants' inquiries due to time constraints. You'll find his responses to some of those questions in this article. Find out how employee trust impacts the implementation of a 4DWW and that individuals must recognize that they have to work together to reduce wasted time.Any Inspiration requests? P&C is on it. Ping Danielle.