Why this company *requires* rest

Happy Tuesday, pals! Hope everyone had a nice long weekend. Mine included my fair share (okay more than my fair share) of potato salad at one too many BBQs. Truly have yet to meet a form of potato I didn’t like.

Tuesday tunes: Been on a big JoBros kick lately and was recently reminded of this hot track (pun intended because I am who I am). Also, the exact opposite theme of what we’re talking about today! Fun!

—Rod

How One Company Is Eliminating Burnout for Good

Imagine a world without burnout. You can ease into the week with a noon start time on Mondays. Or enjoy your PTO in Paris without being asked for the company’s Twitter password when you’re three glasses of champagne deep (speaking from personal experience).

For the eight employees at the creative and design agency Utendahl Creative, that world is a reality. Because the (all-female) team at Utendahl Creative has launched a mission to “change the way we work as a society,” founder and chief creative officer Madison Utendahl told us.

"The agency was born as a direct rebellion against a toxic millennial startup culture that myself and many of our team members lived through and experienced burnout as a result of," Madison said.

How that mission manifests at Utendahl Creative:

• Five weeks of mandatory time off per year

• A noon start time on Mondays and a 2pm end time on Fridays

• No texting or calling coworkers about work on weekends, nights, or vacations

• No giving clients personal phone numbers

For Utendahl Creative, which works with brands like about-face, Judy, and more, the goal is to remove the distraction of constant work and encourage the team to…

“Embracing presence not only helps to prevent burnout but also fosters a more profound connection with oneself, others, and the work being done, ultimately leading to a more balanced and meaningful life,” Madison said.

And we all know: Balance is a stop along the way to setting healthy boundaries, which (say it with me!) we all love. “When each team member establishes and respects their boundaries, it creates a culture of mutual respect, understanding, and empathy,” Madison said.

And that’s good for business. Madison said the nontraditional workplace policies at Utendahl Creative have boosted productivity, creativity, and retention.

• “The overall theme of the response to these policies has been that it gives us all the permission to truly unplug and rest, without fear that we’re falling behind or missing anything,” Madison said.

• The one downside? “Not everyone is ready or willing to sit with themselves and have idle time that may provoke self-reflection,” Madison told us. But with all that mandatory PTO…maybe we’d have time to pencil in some “look at self in mirror” time?

So…what are you to do if you don’t have a boss like Madison? First of all, share this newsletter in the company Slack. Second? Consider these resources.

1. Madison recommends a few mindfulness practices that can help extinguish burnout: take breaks, try not to overthink (tell myself this every morning), never underestimate the power of therapy, set only realistic goals and deadlines, and surround yourself with people who make you feel lighter and safer.

2. Consider picking up these “life-changing” books Madison recommends: Rest: Why You Get More Done When You Work Less by Alex Soojung-Kim Pang and Rest is Resistance: A Manifesto by Tricia Hersey.

3. When all else fails, there’s always Utendahl Creative’s Burnout Burner, a candle that encourages presence with rituals like winding down and exploring your own creativity. Turn off your notifications and burn this instead of burning yourself out—we promise it’ll smell better, too.

One note from Madison: “I’d challenge you to turn your daily routines into rituals. It can be something as small as lighting a candle, but taking that intentional moment to get out of your head and come back to yourself can be really powerful in regaining perspective, strength, and power within yourself.”

Things to Slack your work besties

…after eating an entire pint of Cherry Garcia for lunch.

Oh you thought this tip was going to make you smarter at your job? Even better, it’ll get you one step closer to being a real adult.

Need a midday scrolling break? Arianna Margulis’ Instagram account, ButLikeMaybe, makes me LOL and maybe because it’s just a smidge too relatable? Hit reply and send me your favorite post.

Selling Sunset may be one of my biggest guilty pleasures, besides drinking a glass of cow’s milk (sue me). Season 6 is out with new cast members, Chrishell’s thriving love life, and of course, over-the-top outfits that your real estate agent would never actually wear.

Thanks for reading! Hope your week fast forwards to Friday so we can meet back here for some more of your hot Qs!

IDK WHAT DO I KNOW?! LMAO!

—Rod