你热爱自己的工作吗？一想到要工作一整天，你是无比期待，还是惴惴不安？对于有些人来说，从星期一开始就数着日子，盼着星期五能早早到来，好在周末时光逃离繁琐枯燥的日常事务。难道我们非要带着这种情绪工作吗？

 

Do you enjoy working? Does the prospect¹ of a day in the office fill you with excitement or dread²? And when you're at your desk do you spend your time clock-watching – longing³ for the moment when it's time to switch off your computer and head for home? For some of us, we start the working week on Monday and count the days until Friday when the weekend begins and we have a break from the daily grind. But does it have to be this way?

 

Hopefully, working brings us some pleasure. And there's the chance of career development and a pay rise. But surely there is a life outside the office to be enjoyed. And if life is for living, then maybe we should get on living it! Maybe that's why some people are questioning whether a five-day working week is right for employees and employers alike?

 

It's something BBC journalist, Ashitha Nagesh has been investigating. She's said although technology is supposed to make our working lives easier, giving us more leisure time, "tech has arguably had the opposite effect - it's enabled an 'always-on' culture that means even when you go home, the work doesn't stop." It seems we need to do something to find a better work-life balance.

 

The company Prospect Guardian⁴ trialled a four-day week earlier this year and reportedly found workers were less stressed and had a better work-life balance when they had an extra day off in the week, but were still paid for five days. This, in turn, apparently⁵ meant they were more productive on the days that they were in the office.

 

In the UK, the Green Party is calling for a four-day week, which would help people's "well-being⁶". Co-leader Sian Berry told the BBC work-life balance was "in crisis" and claims that "people with more fulfilling work and more free time could be more productive".

 

A shorter working week is also believed to be better for your health. Research has found that working long hours increases the chance of work-related stress, depression and anxiety. And a project by Project:Time Off and GfK found it was the millennial⁷ generation who felt particularly stressed and overworked but were reluctant to use up their annual leave.

 

So with evidence that we can be more productive and healthier then maybe a four-day week will become a reality for all of us. The next problem would be deciding what to do with your extra free time!

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