Published: March 28, 2008 03:05 pm            

LIFESTYLE: Tuesday the best day to work

Fat Tuesday is for gorging.

Super Tuesday is for voting.

But most Tuesdays are for working — working hard, that is.

Tuesday is considered, by far, the most productive day of the workweek, according to a 2007 survey by Accountemps, a staffing service for temporary accounting, finance and bookkeeping professionals. Of 150 executives polled, 57 percent said Tuesdays are the busiest day — up from 48 percent in 2002, the last time the survey was conducted.

Mondays came in second, with 12 percent of the vote, a decline from 26 percent in 2002.

The national poll included responses from executives in human resources, finance and marketing departments with the nation’s 1,000 largest companies.

In all the years the survey has been conducted — last year, 2002, 1998 and 1987 — Tuesday always has been deemed the busiest day.

Many view Tuesday as an opportunity to focus efforts and establish momentum for the rest of the week, said Robin Ankton, branch manager of Accountemps in Southfield, Mich.

Weeks have a rhythm to them, and Monday, for the most part, is not a good day to get work done, said Don Wetmore, president of the Productivity Institute in Stratford, Conn.

“Just listen to the radio on Monday morning,” he said. Songs typically played include the Carpenters’ “Rainy Days and Mondays” or something equally melancholic, he said.

“Most people who go to work on Mondays don’t want to be there,” Wetmore said.

Ankton said that most Mondays are jam-packed with meetings, making it difficult to get things accomplished.

Wednesday is hump day, and come Friday, most people want to be somewhere else, Wetmore said.

Understanding the rhythm of a week can help employees plan better and hustle more. However, most people work best at their own pace, Wetmore said.

“You have to go with who you are,” he said. “There are racehorses and tortoises. Racehorses might schedule all their activities in one day, and a tortoise might spread it out. At the end of the day, both of us have accomplished the same, but gone about it differently.”

Ankton said that better planning can help employees get more done during days when they don’t feel as productive. Clustering tasks together and ignoring some e-mail can often boost productivity.

The productivity survey rings true for Ewa Matuszewski, CEO of Medical Network One in Rochester, Mich.

She takes care of her parents through the weekend, and when she comes to work on Mondays, she is tired and works hard to catch up.

“On Tuesdays, I’m really focused,” she said. “I’m productive and can attain the most.”

Mortgage broker Gideon Pfeffer said his early workweek gets progressively more productive, peaking on Wednesday and taking a tumble toward the end of the week. Friday is his least productive day, he said.

“Mondays are hard for people to get into the grind,” Pfeffer said. “I think by Tuesday, you’re in motion, and then Wednesday, everyone’s trying to get as much done as possible.”

Work culture affects productivity, too, Pfeffer said.

“We have a lot of networking events Thursday and Friday,” he said. “Since I’m in real estate, a lot of Fridays, I’m out at job sites, and in the summer, I might catch nine holes in the afternoon.”

        

• Click to discuss this story with other readers on our forums.