You will thank yourself for looking at your schedule in a new way.

In the last few months, I've had to work at an increased volume and pace.

The reasons? Good. I took on new projects that will eventually contribute to a reduction in my workload.

The motivations? Noble. I will help as many therapists as I can to reduce burnout risk and remain in the field.

But burnout risk does not care about your reasons or your motivations for doing too much.

Burnout risk is the same as it ever was for therapist.

Burnout prevalence in therapists hovers in the mid 60%. If you know 3 therapists, 1 has met burnout criteria in the past year.

So knowing our risk factors, and the research, I've maintained one sneaky little habit to preserve my peace, long time subscribers have already tried it and love it. And you can steal it right now.

The Strategy

Every month that has an extra "fifth week" in it, I block off some time in that week. So, right as the stress was rising last month, I remembered: "Oh! I don't have any clients next Tuesday!" And while I love my clients, I also thanked my prior self for giving me some space to clear my mind, reset, and catch up.

If you do not have a ton of PTO, or if you're nervous about productivity at your job, I promise you, this is the most accessible thing you can do to reclaim some rest and freedom at your job.

Let's look at October, for example.

There are 5 Thursdays and 5 Fridays in this month.

Right now, before you can talk yourself out of it, give 10/29 or 10/30 (or 10/31 if you work weekends) back to yourself.

If you are in full control of your schedule, block the day completely off. When the day comes, ✨💨DISAPPEAR💨✨

If you are NOT in full control of your schedule, and you'll have to work anyway, get creative. Can you:

Be unavailable for client appointments?

Put an event on your calendar so that people can't schedule a meeting with you?

Assign "extended admin time" or "learning time" on your calendar?

Look, some of your "learning time" might be you "learning" more about the inside of your eyelids. No judgment, just don't get fired, groceries ain't free.

Any way, here's why this "Fifth Day" strategy works:

If you have a monthly productivity requirement, you've likely already met it in the first 4 weeks.

If you budget based on your weekly billing, you're sacrificing some time, but you can see that day off coming WAY in advance. This allows you to sprinkle a few extra appointments in earlier in the month, let your clients know way in advance, and move them wherever you need to to maintain the income.

By taking a day or two every few months, it doesn't feel too "selfish." You might struggle with taking bigger blocks of time off, or you might need to save most of your PTO for other responsibilities. So gradually, rebuild a sustainable habit of resting BEFORE you're tired, without losing availability for the things you are responsible for.

Here are some upcoming weekday "5th Days" you can mark off in your calendar. Block them all, block a few, or just take a few half-days as an experiment.

2026

• Thursday 10/29/26

• Friday 10/30/26

• Monday 11/30/26

• Tuesday 12/29/26

• Wednesday 12/30/26

• Thursday 12/31/26 (NYE)

2027

• Friday 1/29/27

• Monday 3/29/27

• Tuesday 3/30/27

• Wednesday 3/31/27