The many ways to embrace a three-day weekend

Most people would admit they’ve experienced a case of the “Sundays” at some point in their lives, or perhaps, every week. The Sundays occurs when you know weekend time is fleeting, particularly as Sunday afternoon turns into Sunday evening and the work week looms on the horizon. But when the weekend just happens to be a three-day weekend, those concerns about Monday’s arrival vanish.

In the United States, three-day weekends owe their existence largely to the Uniform Monday Holiday Act. In 1968, Congress moved a number of federal holidays to Monday. This enabled a longer weekend rather than breaking up the work week. In other countries, three-day weekends may result from their own federal holidays and other observed occasions.

Nearly everyone enjoys a long weekend. And there is a growing body of evidence that a shorter workweek contributes to greater productivity. Reflect, a company that promotes biofeedback and meditation services, reported that more than 900 workers in 33 companies in the U.S. and Ireland participated in a six-month-long test of a four-day workweek. Ninety-seven percent of employees said they enjoyed having the extra day to themselves. The companies reported an average 8 percent increase in revenue during the test period and a 38 percent increase compared to the same time period the previous year. Three-day weekends promote mental health by giving individuals an extra day to recharge.

Those looking to maximize their three-day weekends can consider the following ideas.

• Host a party. Anyone who has booked a party venue realizes that Friday and Saturday are the busiest and often most expensive days to host an event. With a three-day weekend, you can host a party on Sunday when rates may be cheaper and availability greater. Guests won’t have to worry about waking up early the next day to go to work.

• Take a short trip. Use the extra day for a short getaway. Leave Friday afternoon or evening and enjoy a little extra R&R away from home.

• Sleep in an extra day. Sleeping longer has been shown to improve health and longevity. Long weekends present ample opportunity to relax sleep routines and roll over for an extra hour or two.

• Disconnect for a day or two. Long weekends enable you to turn off devices and get away from the constant distractions of life. Plan a day when you’re devices-free. Go hiking, camping, boating, or enjoy other nature-heavy activities.

• Catch up on chores. Although it’s not the most glamourous use of time, a three-day weekend gives you an extra day to tackle projects around the home. Therefore, that remodeling idea or landscaping job that you’ve been putting off can get finished due to the extra day off.

• Spend time with your family. Work and school may get in the way of sitting down with the family to enjoy meals and activities. Plan to do more of that when a three-day weekend pops up, allocating at least one day of the weekend exclusively to family time.

Three-day weekends provide extra time for those who can relish in the break the extra day off provides.