Do we need to work on weekends or is it important to rest?

Sergei Petrov
59 replies
Working on a project in part time is often not enough time. Do you work on weekends and how do you unload your brain?

Replies

Working on weekends is a matter of choice. But resting is a must. It makes your body and mind relax and keeps you refreshed. It also gives you time to think, dream, and plan for the future. Rest is essential for students, professionals, and even parents. Ironically, rest is an integral part of working.
Sergei Petrov
@ali_shaheen This is true. Rest is really important! Many of my friends, and myself, have experienced burnout. This is a common problem in many areas. Have you ever experienced this and how did you get out of it?
Stas Voronov
I completely turn off the brain from work on the weekends. Firstly, it helps to generate new ideas, and secondly, it saves from burnout.
Sergei Petrov
@stas_voronov What helps you keep your brain in good shape during the working day?
Sergei Petrov
@stas_voronov I also heard something about daytime sleep 😴. Could you share your experience here?
Stas Voronov
@sergeipetrov Oh man, it's a really great life hack! I'd recommend to check this research: https://www.sleepfoundation.org/...
Stas Voronov
@sergeipetrov My secret (not) formula: Pomodoro technique + Meditation + Any physical activity :)
Sergei Petrov
@stas_voronov Whoa! Thanks for sharing. I will definitely read it!
Mayank Jain
While there are pros and cons to working on weekends, most people seem to do better when they take a break from work on the weekends. This allows them to recharge and focus on other important aspects of their lives. Having said that, you don't need to completely ditch work. In fact, working on weekends can actually be a good way to reflect on your past week and plan for the next. Ultimately, it's important to find a work-life balance that works for you :)
Sergei Petrov
@mjain_mayank Well said. You right, it is not necessary to quit your main job in order to pursue your project. I am good at combining these activities. But still, 40 hours a week is a very tasty bunch, which I would spend on developing my own business with great pleasure.
Rich Watson
NVSTly: Social Investing
NVSTly: Social Investing
I like working on weekends because our app is for stock traders (soon crypto) and the markets are closed on the weekends, so it's easier to get more stuff done without many distractions.
Sergei Petrov
@richw Why did you stop doing it? I'm interested in coming up with an algorithm myself and implementing it, but since the last market crash, my bot has been idle - waiting for the next rise. πŸ˜‰
Rich Watson
NVSTly: Social Investing
NVSTly: Social Investing
@sergeipetrov yeah who knows when that will be. if you're serious about doing your own you should check out SuperAlgos it is PACKED with stuff. https://github.com/Superalgos/Su...
Sergei Petrov
@richw Looks really great! Powerful thing and open-source. Thank you very much for sharing with me. I used my personal account and the official Binance API for trading. Now the bot has frozen all purchases and is waiting for a price increase to sell. Next step, I want to try launching another one with new approach at Point Pay. What trading exchange did you use?
Rich Watson
NVSTly: Social Investing
NVSTly: Social Investing
@sergeipetrov I don't trade crypto, more long term investing and use Coinbase to do that. I was using 3commas for my trading bot, can't remember if I was depositing money into it or was using an API key- been a while. I'm a stock trader. But yeah when I was looking through algo trading I found that SuperAlgos and planned running it on my Raspberry Pi but just never had the time to learn it all and set it up.
Sergei Petrov
@richw Completely understand, now I also only follow long-term changes. This is exactly what I do for fun in my free time and on weekends. As for automation, I have postponed it for lack of time. Last year I bought several NFTs and now sometimes I go and watch the development of teams that I believed in. How do you feel about the NFT?
Nyla Chughtai
The only way to create and maintain a high level of discipline is by resting properly. And for this, you need to have a proper routine. There should be a time when you completely switch off and relax. We often work on weekends because we think we will make more money. But actually, that's not always true. Resting on weekends will keep you fresh and the most productive.
Sergei Petrov
@nyla_chughtai Well noted! Those who work hard often earn little. Discipline is definitely important. What key points and rules do you adhere to and why?
Joanne Hurley
I prefer not to work on the weekends and relax and enjoy friends/family and other activities. Sometimes I do like just clearing out emails on a sunday evening or planning a little the work for Monday. Working for a start up I try and be flexible and I'm open to some work at the weekend where necassary but not as a habbit. I find who you work for helps with this, a former boss would overstep boundaries quite a lot so once you did one weekend it quickly became the norm but with the company I currently work for is very respectful so when its needed I trust that it is.
Sergei Petrov
@joanne_hurleyv1 thank you, Joanne. You absolutely right!
Sergei Petrov
@joanne_hurleyv1 Thanks Joan. I think it must be rare when the boss demands to work on weekends. Rather, it should be an exception to the rule or not at all. Businesses usually understand that a tired employee is not a productive employee. The boss himself should be interested so that you do not linger at work and do not get tired. But what about own pet project? When is the best time to do it, after work or on weekends?
Joanne Hurley
@sergeipetrov I'd like to say it's rare but I'm not sure. Some founders or CEOs might intellectually know that it's counterproductive but emotionally still apply the pressure. I'm a great believer in rest and enjoyable distractions with time away for clear thinking and rejuvenation. Having said that, if your side project relaxes you / gives you joy from the routine job then as long as you have other balances (sport? / good relationships / meditation / hobby? fill in the blank) then I don't see a problem. Key is to be aware of how you / and your body are coping and have some boundaries in yourself (or use an outside sounding board like a coach / therapy) to notice if you are starting to have the very first steps of burn out and nip it in the bud and re evaluate and re juggle your priorities. Eating well, movement and sleep do wonders and shouldnt be sideline even if you decide to work weekends.
Sakshi Gahlawat
It's important to have a day or two to yourself :) Relaxing your mind is necessary.
Sergei Petrov
@sakshi_gahlawat Is it possible to call relaxation and distraction from the main work, work on your own project?
Sergei Petrov
@sakshi_gahlawat Yes, balance is everything!
Eric Amorin
It all depends on your bank balance :)
Sergei Petrov
@eric_lonegan Well noticed, but is there a lot of money? In addition, money is certainly a good motivator, but not the most effective one.
Sergei Petrov
How do you spend your weekends?
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11 Answers
Arpan
Having a good work-life balance is really important in life.
Sergei Petrov
@arpan_011 Roger! πŸ˜€ Do you have a secret to achieve good balance?
Sergei Petrov
@arpan_011 Haha, great point! What if you work from home?πŸ˜†
Arpan
@sergeipetrov Then It's already in balance ig? xD
Arpan
@sergeipetrov Just make sure to finish all the office work in the office itself.
Sergei Petrov
@arpan_011 I use two computers - one more for work, the other for everything else
Divya
It is 100% important to relax on weekends and be at peace
Divya
@sergeipetrov listening to music helps.
Gaurav Goyal
I partially work on weekends and mostly spend time with my family. I use Saturdays to step back and retrospect. Usually, this is not possible on weekdays given the startup madness :)
Sergei Petrov
@gauravgoyal_gg Yes, in the constant drive of a startup, it's needed to pause and arrange retrospectives so as not to miss something important. On Saturdays, do you do it alone or in a team?
Gaurav Goyal
@sergeipetrov yeah. Mostly alone or in a team of 2-3 max. That way, I can step back as well as brainstorm on important stuff.
Sergei Petrov
@gauravgoyal_gg Very interesting. I'll take it on board :) What important or interesting point has been lately?
Gaurav Goyal
@sergeipetrov So we are building a content marketing platform. We have been brainstorming to make the product sticky for a few weeks now. Interesting problem to solve.
Sergei Petrov
@gauravgoyal_gg wow, interesting. What does sticky mean?
Haris Khan
In my opinion overdoing yourself is not good for the long run, your productivity and capability of doing great things gets reduced drastically. Giving yourself rest on weekend is great for achieving more miles on the road.
Sergei Petrov
@muhammadhariskhan You are absolutely right about the long term. But what about short-term races, when there is a desire and need to have time to release something important?
Haris Khan
@sergeipetrov when it comes to short term things, if a scenario like this happens one can surely improvise and kick out a few things from our routine that can be paused for a while and start our day earlier. And then once the release is done, we can go back to the normal life. But going back to the normal life we should then start working out on what caused the things that forced us to change our routine and figure out the ways to stop doing such kind of races that can be avoided with better planning. As if left unresolved, these short term races can become quite recurring and one ends up getting overdoing himself.
Sergei Petrov
@muhammadhariskhan I agree, it's really quite a common scenario when the exception becomes the rule. Here we need to be careful. Sounds like you've experienced something similar.
Haris Khan
@sergeipetrov Yeah bro working in a fast-paced environments like the modern startup these days, I have experienced this on multiple occasions but whenever it happens I try to 2 things. One is my skill of improvising things on the run and the other is going into the root cause of things that are causing it and then fixing them out with proper SOPs.
Sergei Petrov
@muhammadhariskhan Yes, the ability to improvise and solve problems in an unusual way is a wonderful and even necessary skill now. It's good that you know how! πŸ˜‰