Wellbeing First

By 6am today (the Tuesday after a long weekend), I'd already had two conversations with people wishing they worked a four-day week.

Not because they're lazy.

Because they're feeling stretched.

Because they wish they had more time for the things that light them up 🤩

I probably have at least a couple of these conversations every week.

And the interesting thing is that most people aren't spending weekends relaxing.

Saturday becomes cleaning, laundry, maintenance and catching up.

Sunday becomes groceries, meal prep, bills and getting ready for another week.

A long weekend suddenly feels luxurious because there's finally a day left over for living.

Which always gets me wondering...

❓ Is the 40-hour week becoming (or already) redundant?

The five-day work week was created in a very different era.

Today, most of us are trying to fit everything into the same 168 hours:

💤 Sleep
💼 Work
🏃‍♀️ Exercise
🥗 Cooking and meal prep
🧺 Cleaning and laundry
🛒 Shopping
💳 Managing finances
❤️ Caring for others
🩺 Health appointments
🤝 Volunteering and community commitments
🏡 Home and property maintenance
📧 Endless digital admin

And somehow we're surprised that everyone feels stretched 😮

I've worked a four-day week for years and one thing I've noticed is that reducing time often increases focus.

When time is scarce, priorities become clearer.

I actually become more productive.

The question isn't whether people can work less.

The question is whether we're measuring the right thing.

🤷🏼‍♀️ Should we be measuring hours worked?

Or outcomes achieved?

A huge shout out to Andrew Barnes ONZM, whose work helped spark the global four-day week movement.

👏🏼 What a legacy.

⏩ Fast forward to the end of your life.

Do you think you'll wish you'd spent more time in meetings and emails?

Or more time pursuing the people, passions and experiences that mattered most?

If you could work a four-day week tomorrow without sacrificing your career, would you?

And what's currently taking up the biggest chunk of your time outside of work?

One year in Wānaka - what a time!

Honestly, this past year has stretched me personally and professionally more than any other season of my life.

There’s been a sh*tload of uncertainty and a lot of lessons the universe clearly thought I still needed to learn.

At times it felt like everything was changing all at once and nothing felt particularly clear.

This carousel is a bit of a life update — and captures some of the biggest lessons and reflections from my first year living in Wānaka.

One thing I know for sure:

Sometimes the seasons that feel the most uncertain are also the ones quietly transforming your life the most 💜

Some drool worthy meal inspo from first week of .wanaka Reset Challenge 🤤

🍽️ Vegetable Frittata – added egg whites for more protein
🍽️ Frittata served with salad greens + nutritional yeast for dairy free cheesey-ness
🍽️ Zingy Chicken Power Bowl – pesto and rice ⭐ ingredients
🍽️ Protein Berry Shake - Afternoon wake up
🍽️ Lamb + Mustard Pumpkin + Kumara Salad with Steamed Greens
🍽️Nice Cream (frozen banana, berries, protein + Greek yoghurt) with Keto Granola
🍽️ Tuna Poke Bowl – ⭐ingredient is mango
🍽️ Scrambled eggs, steamed pumpkin + kumara and salad greens
🍽️ Rice cakes with yoghurt, protein + carob powder whip + banana
🍽️ Mexican Chicken Bowl with Konjac Rice (uber low calorie)
🍽️ Rice cakes with Greek yoghurt, tahini and strawberries

(except yoghurt!)

As 2025 winds down, I want to share one of my annual rituals 🔮

Not a “new year, new you” push.
Not another goal-setting worksheet.
Just a chance to pause and reflect.

I’ve created a 2025 Reflect & Reset Exercise to help you:

🎉 celebrate what went well
💡 make sense of the lessons
🤝 reconnect with what matters
👟 step into 2026 with clarity

Take your time with it.
Come back to it.
Let it meet you where you are.

Because you deserve a thoughtful ending to 2025

And a grounded beginning to 2026.

My mantra for the year ahead:
2026: the year that (almost) everything clicks 🌟

🔗 https://www.wellbeingfirst.co.nz/post/reflect-reset-exercise-close-out-2025-with-intention

💌 Message me if you do it

Wellbeing First. Always 💜

“We’re now weaving wellbeing into everything we do. It’s no longer an afterthought, it’s integral to business as usual" - Megan Elmiger, GM People, Safety & Marine.

Meet CentrePort Wellington.

When they started their Wellbeing Tick Accreditation, they committed to moving beyond token gestures and designed a workplace culture where every team member feels supported and included.

From wharf‑workers to office staff, everyone now has a voice and genuine access to wellbeing support and resources.

Want to read the full journey and see how culture, connection and trust turned things around at CentrePort?

Read the full article here 👇
https://www.wellbeingfirst.co.nz/post/do-workplace-wellbeing-progammes-work-the-centreport-case-study