TGIF Mentality, Joe GirardIt’s Friday! And what do most people say?  TGIF! But why do we do it?  What message do we send to others and even to ourselves when we proclaim TGIF? That we are glad the work is over? That what we do with 5/7 of our time does not make us happy?

Thanks to Kyla Jardin at UVic for today’s topic as it got me thinking. Perhaps it’s time to reframe the way we look at work?  Or at least, how we view Fridays. How can you make your Fridays mean something different to you?

Okay, let’s get one thing clear to start.  I am not trying to fluff your pillows and tell you that you have to be happy every day and that your work should be meaningful. While that is surely one way, the slant I want to take is around re-framing your Friday mindset.

The TGIF mindset is fundamentally flawed.

Living for the weekend?

I understand the living for the weekend mentality. Everyone does it. But when you live for the weekend, that makes you a victim. A victim to your circumstance and the choices you’ve made.

All week you wait until Friday.  Last night I was at a comedy show and the comedian told everyone to just get drunk because no one really does any work on Friday. And for many people that’s true. They just count the minutes until the end of the day. Perhaps take a long lunch, and mentally check out well in advance of 5:00.

Then Friday night rolls in, and you go out have some fun, perhaps plan on sleeping in. But, maybe you told yourself you were going to have a productive weekend? You think, “I have two whole days to get things done.”

Saturday morning comes, you maybe run some errands and feel good on your first day off of the weekend.  Saturday night is a great night to go out and have some fun.

Sunday shows up and maybe you start to get that nagging feeling…Work is coming…

Then Sunday night comes and you feel like all is lost. “Man, another five days to kill before next weekend…”

Does that sound familiar?  How many years do you want to live like that?

Your time is valuable.  Do you value it?

Every day, you make choices.  You choose your clothes. You choose your food. And you also choose your attitude. When you live your week in a four out of five day, TGIF mindset, you only harm yourself. You say to yourself that your work is not your choice.

Find something important to do each day and get it done. Whether it is for work, or for yourself. And do it all seven days of the week.

There are people all around you that will try and bring you into the TGIF mentality. On Facebook, at work, via text, etc. Can you lead by example and think that Friday is just another day?

Friday is an opportunity for you to do something. 

Now, perhaps the people around you won’t immediately share the love for this idea, so ask yourself what could you do on Fridays to make them more enjoyable?

Make Friday your b****

Yah, I said it.

Instead of TGIF, you could say, FIMB.  (Friday is my B****).  Hey, why not?

Treat friday as your day to close the week strong. Maybe, throughout the week, you can structure some more of the tedious work, like filing, bills, paperwork for those days when you have that extra “work energy.”

Can you make Friday your most enjoyable, productive day of the week? Imagine if you added that one extra day of super-productive hours.  You just added 20% to your week.

Use Friday to:

  • Go for an early coffee with a friend or colleague to ignite your energy levels (I did this morning and got super fired up! Thanks Chris!) 
  • Contact key clients and reconnect – see if there are ways you can help
  • Work in teams on energizing projects
  • Take a co-worker, boss, employee, or mentor out for lunch and discuss some cool new opportunities
  • Finish a week-long task that you set out on Monday. Something you really can crank out for the week
  • Write a blog post
  • Read articles that boost your skills
  • Apply some new skills you have been reading about
  • Plan your weekend – both the productive and the fun
  • Send thank you cards
  • Add VALUE to someone’s day

The choices are unlimited, but do you see how you could actually turn Friday into the day you really enjoy?

As a leader, how can you make Fridays something your teams actually look forward to? 

When you find a way to make each day your own, you stop being a victim and don’t need that TGIF mentality. Your energy levels are not a reflection of the day, but of YOU. So as you work through your Friday, make it yours. Then make Saturday yours, Sunday, AND Monday.  They all belong to you. What will you do with them?

Now ultimately, starting your own business is the answer because you can do whatever you want, whenever you want. But perhaps even starting your own website, blog, or small store could get you excited about making the most of your time?

What ideas do you have about TGIF? Share your comments below.

Joe Girard
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    4 replies to "TGIF Mentality: Get Rid of it"

    • Josephine

      Thanks again Joe! Super helpful. What I struggle with most is getting motivated and being HAPPILY productive after lunch. I thought this had something to do with what I was doing with my hour off but then I switched it up and still felt the same way. I can apply some of these FIMB tips to help solve this problem. So YAY! Want to write a post about afternoon blues and keeping up steam? Love to hear your input. I think the key is what I line up after lunch. Right now its typesetting… uhmm.

      • Joe Girard

        Love it! let’s do a post together on this subject. Afternoons kill a lot of people’s energy, so it is important to do two things: (1) eat the right foods (2) schedule the right stuff after lunch. I like after lunch meetings that get me inspired. THen I go back and crank out cool projects. Do the crap work in the AM. Get it done. let’s chat more

    • […] is to get out and connect with people! And have fun! I wrote about that also in my post about the TGIF mentality. Why can’t it just be, TGI…Today? What will you do each day, to truly enjoy it and make […]

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