About one month ago, I dropped down to 0.9 FTE (full-time equivalent). I thought it might be time to reflect on how it’s going so far.
Despite my disappointing first day, I do find that I am leaving work about 1 hour earlier on the days that my work schedule was cut by 1 hour. Sometimes I leave only 30 to 45 minutes earlier. My in-box isn’t empty, but it is smaller. Most importantly, I no longer leave with a long list of notes undone. I used to dread returning to work with 10 or 15 unfinished notes to finish writing.
What do I do with that reclaimed hour?
Looking back at my fitness logs, I can’t really say that I’m using that extra hour (or 45 minutes) to get more exercise in. I think I walked home once. Parts of the house look a little less cluttered, but that may have more to do with my overall schedule, and the fact we had some family in town to visit.
I do spend a little more time with my husband in the evenings. We sometimes watch the evening news. My jaw is clenched a little less throughout the day.
I got my first paycheck on this reduced schedule; that was a bit painful.
Has cutting back been worth it? I think it’s too early to tell.
The original impetus was to work on my health, and I don’t think I have enough data points to see any trends yet.
On my newly shorter days, I still feel like I’m getting away with something when I see my schedule ends early. I feel the possibility of doing more after work, even if I don’t do anything fancy.
I’m not sure how to put a price on extra time with my husband or less tension at the jaw or the feeling of having freedom and possibilities. But I think it might be worth everything.