MyDay: work-life balance at DRP

😎 Days off are like gummy bears. Somehow they taste good to everyone, and yet everyone has their favourite colour… To the museum again. Sleeping off the hangover from the concert. Do your tax return. Or just chill out. We’re just going to do it now!

Almost exactly two years ago, we embarked on the My Day experiment with an open mind. That’s what we call the day that all colleagues can take off once a month, regardless of holiday entitlement, to do all the things that would otherwise be neglected.

And because we would like to share this with you, here are our very personal My Day insights.

👨‍⚖️ 1. It doesn’t work without rules.
My-Day should always be something other than a normal holiday. A day given as a gift. Out of the blue. Like a found banknote that makes you happier than a bank transfer. That’s why it quickly became clear that extending holidays or public holidays with My-Day was out of the question.

🐣 2. early announcement secures the best places
My-Days need to be coordinated across the entire team. The earlier, the better. This allows colleagues to plan the capacity takeover better.

🛑 3. sometimes something comes up
Half the team is on holiday. Two colleagues are ill? Then My Day has to wait. What we have learnt in two years: The sensitivity for when something like this works and when it doesn’t always lies within the team. And we’re pretty proud of the fact that, in times of need, people have always said ‘Never mind, I can postpone the day off until next week’. After all, every hand is needed in heavy seas.

📅 4. attention: conflicting deadlines
Speaking of sensitivity: My-Days only work, of course, if they are entered in the calendar in good time. A subsequent ‘Oh no, I actually wanted to do My-Day…’ is just stupid if four other colleagues have already scheduled an important appointment for that very day. The only thing that helps here is schedule discipline.

👓 5. sense of proportion
Previous number of My-Days not approved in two years: three. And only because the applicants were not yet informed about important upcoming dates. Which we think is really great: The need for this was understood immediately in each case. This understanding on both sides is of great importance. After all, keeping the boat on course is just as important as recharging the battery. If you’ve been wondering what the funny AI picture in this post is all about, now you know.