Why the 7-Day Week Is the Devil

The concept of the 7-day week is so deeply ingrained in us that we never stop to question it. But it is one of the most ingenious instruments of oppression there is. Let me explain.

I.

We are slaves to the 7-day week. For 5 days, we do work that we despise. On days 6 and 7, we cut loose. This rhythm determines the entirety of our lives.

Naturally, nobody enjoys sitting in a cubicle, filling out Excel tables, sucking up to their jerk of a boss. It's a mind-numbing, soul-crushing way to spend your day.

So, when the weekend comes around, we cut loose. We get drunk. We mindlessly socialize. We eat bad food. We go on shopping sprees. Anything to take the edge off.

Because we know — on Monday, the whole pointless cycle will start over again.

That's why we look forward to retirement so much — we finally get to leave the 7-day week behind. Finally, the coercion stops. You can spend every day as you see fit. If you want to do something productive (work on your novel, lift weights, declutter your house), you can. If you feel like taking a break, you also can. Every day is equally open.

II.

There are few things as arbitrary as the 7-day week. Why 7 days? Why not 10 days? Or 5?

There are other units of time that actually make sense, like observing the seasons. You want to have a winter jacket before it gets frosty. As a farmer, you must pay attention to when to sow the seeds and when to reap them.

But the 7-day workweek? There is no good, inherent reason for it. Tellingly, hunter-gatherers had no notion of the 7-day week. What for? They obtained food when they needed it. They did fun things when their bellies were full.

That makes sense.

III.

There are two bad, manmade reasons why we ended up with the 7-day week — agriculture and industrialization.

When you do backbreaking work for a landowner on a field each day, there comes a point where you have had it. For most people, that point will be around the 5-day or 6-day mark.

For the landowner, it makes sense to give you a day or two off now. Otherwise, if they keep pushing, people might quit or even start revolting.

With industrialization, the pain shifted. Now it's less about the physical exhaustion and more about the mental monotony. Doing the same couple of moves at an assembly belt gets old. So does staring at the same screen in the same gray cubicle each day.

IV.

To quit the 7-day week, you must find work that you don't need a break from every 5 days. In other words — you must turn your passion into your living.

If you are currently writing a novel and you are in the grip of the muse, you won't stop because it's the weekend. You'll stop when the first draft is done.

If you are currently coding an app that you are excited to launch, you won't take the weekends off. You'll take a break when you have a working prototype.

If you are currently training for a high-level athletic event, you won't take a break because it's Sunday. You'll take a break when your body needs to recover, to avoid injury.

V.

When you make the switch from pointless work to exciting, passion-based work, there is a common trap that you must watch out for. You must be careful not to keep observing the 7-day rhythm out of social pressure.

This is a major challenge with many entrepreneurs I coach. Even though they technically left the 7-day week behind, they still cling to it.

They will take a break every weekend — socialize, get drunk, feast on junk food, etc. — just because everybody else is doing it. They can't stand the idea of staying at home while everyone else is out, partying it up.

But you can't have it both ways — you can't enjoy the privilege of doing meaningful, exciting work but then still go crazy like the average working drone on the weekends. If you want to make your passion project work, you need to work longer and harder; you can't stop after 5 days.

Am I saying you can never take a break again? Of course not. Breaks are essential. Fun is essential. But these things need to happen sporadically, i.e., when you have truly reached your limit. If you must, fly to Vegas and do things that stay in Vegas. But do it every 6 months or so. Not every weekend.

This is how you outwork your competitors. This is also how you stay healthy and functional. A night of debauchery every once in a blue moon won't impact your sleep quality long-term, make you fat, or bankrupt you. Going nuts every weekend will.

These newsletters are by far my favorite writing time. I don't have to pay attention to SEO and can just free-flow. Also, I don't have to worry about stepping on someone's toes so much.

Still working on the YouTube channel. During my marketing days, I did quite a bit of video work for clients (scripting, coordinating teams, etc.). But doing it for yourself is a different story, I must admit. But I'll get there.

Until next week (yes, the irony),

Niels