Why We Ended Our 4-Day Working Week Trial (And What I Learned From It)
By James Fleming, Managing Director of The Power Within Training
A few months ago, I wrote about how we were starting a 4-day working week trial. I was genuinely excited about it. I’d read the research, I’d seen other businesses rave about it, and I thought: this could be a game changer for us.
Fast forward, and here I am writing the update I didn’t expect. We’ve decided to call it off.
I’ll be honest, part of me wanted to keep it going just to prove we could make it work. But leadership isn’t about ego. It’s about making the right call for your people and your business, even when it’s not the one you wanted to make.
The Reality of the Trial
When we started the 4-day week, the idea was simple: give people more time to rest, recharge, and come back sharper. But reality has a way of humbling even the best ideas.
For one, productivity didn’t magically skyrocket. In fact, for some, the workload just shifted; four days to do five days’ worth of work. That’s not sustainable, and it’s certainly not the “rest” we’d promised.
And then there was the customer side of it. In a small business like ours, leaving leads untouched from Thursday night to Monday afternoon was a problem. By the time we got back to them, their interest had dropped, or they’d gone elsewhere.
We also found that Fridays became an extra workday for some of us anyway, because when team members were off, someone had to pick up the slack. And more often than not, that someone was me or Enas (my wife and business partner).
It Just Didn’t Fit Our Business
I’ve always said that leadership isn’t about blindly copying what works for others, it’s about figuring out what works for you. And as much as I believe in flexible, human-centred workplaces, the 4-day week just didn’t fit how we operate right now.
We’re a people-focused business. We work with leaders and managers across industries, especially in construction, where projects move fast, clients need answers quickly, and communication gaps can cost more than just money. Being harder to reach, even for one day, was affecting service.
Could we have pushed through and forced it to work? Maybe. But at what cost? A burnt-out team, frustrated clients, and a leader who’s back to working six or seven days anyway? That’s not progress.
The Leadership Lesson
I’ve learnt that just because something sounds progressive doesn’t mean it’s the right move for your team.
Leaders have a responsibility to look beyond the buzzwords and trends and ask, is this actually working for us?
I could have kept going just to save face. But that’s not leadership. Leadership is being honest when something isn’t working, learning from it, and adjusting. It’s also communicating that clearly to your people so they know why the decision has been made, and that it’s not about going backwards, but about finding a better forward.
What We’re Doing Instead
Ending the 4-day week doesn’t mean we’re abandoning the principle behind it; giving people the time and space to do their best work.
Instead, we’re looking at other ways to achieve that:
- Helping the team prioritise High-Payoff Activities so the right work gets done in the right order.
- Setting clear boundaries so that “time off” is actually off.
- Encouraging flexibility within the week, so people can make space for what matters without impacting the team.
This is where our own USP, Motivational Intelligence, comes into play. It’s not just about time, it’s about mindset. We teach leaders how to adapt, stay resourceful, and make decisions that serve both the people and the business.
Why I’m Glad We Tried
It would be easy to see this as a failed experiment, but I don’t see it that way. Trying the 4-day week forced us to look closely at how we work, where the bottlenecks are, and what really drives results. It got us talking more openly as a team about what’s working and what’s not.
And most importantly, it proved that we’re willing to try new things. That’s a big part of our culture at The Power Within Training. We’ll never ask a client to change if we’re not willing to change ourselves.
A Note to Other Leaders
If you’re considering a 4-day week, or any big shift in how your business operates, here’s my advice:
- Test it with your reality, not the ideal scenario. It’s easy to imagine it working when everything else is running perfectly.
- Get honest feedback early. Your team will tell you what’s really happening, if you listen.
- Don’t be afraid to pivot. Changing your mind isn’t weakness; it’s a sign you’re paying attention.
In the end, our decision wasn’t about going back to “business as usual”, it was about finding a way forward that works for us, our clients, and our people.
Final Word
To everyone who’s been following this trial, thank you for the encouragement, curiosity, and honesty. We may have parked the 4-day week for now, but the bigger conversation about work-life balance, productivity, and leadership is still going strong.
If you’re a business owner or leader struggling with challenges like this, whether it’s workload, burnout, or how to adapt your culture, that’s exactly what we help with.
Through our programmes, such as Leading with Motivational Intelligence, Leading with Change, and Business Growth Academy, we’ve helped leaders across industries make changes that actually work in the real world, not just on paper.
So if you want to explore how to make your business run better without running yourself into the ground, let’s talk.
James Fleming
The Power Within Training,
The Motivational Intelligence Company
james@tpwtd.com
