Your time off is essential to ensuring you remain happy and healthy, and are able to live a full life outside of your work. How would you feel about stretching that time out even further?
When you leave the office on a Friday evening, your time is yours again. You are off the clock; the weekend has begun and you are entitled to spend it however you please. Having this time to yourself is important. It is an essential right, hard won throughout the history of labour law. Not to mention that research demonstrates that taking this time will make you more productive and more creative.
Yet it often doesn’t feel like enough time. Friday evening drinks bleeds into Saturday morning brunch. You return home and quickly catch up on some chores. Then you may languish in front of Netflix, hit the hay early, or venture out again. Before you know it you’re at Sunday, and the lens of your consciousness is anxiously turned towards the week ahead. If you concentrate, you can probably feel a breeze on your ears from those two days racing by you.
Are all weekend activities created equal? Is there a way to protract how long you perceive the time to be? Well, the people at Budget Direct certainly make a strong case for it in their infographic on the subject, falling back on science to support some of the suggested activities.
The infographic suggests, for example, a digital detox over the weekend. Research indicates that people who have less access to their devices feel less hurried. You could opt to leave your phone at home as you go for a mountain hike on a clear, crisp day. The way you spend your time will feel more conscious and purposeful, and you’ll get the myriad benefits of a return to nature to boot.
You could also sign up to a class over the weekend or learn a new skill. According to neuroscientist David Eagleman, our brains have to work harder to process new information, which in turn expands our perception of how much time has passed.
For some more suggestions on how to make the weekend feel longer, check out the infographic below.
Infographic: Budget Direct
Want stories like this and more direct to your inbox? Sign up for Tech Trends, Silicon Republic’s weekly digest of need-to-know tech news.
