At the end of every month, I get a fun little list of the “National Days” for the next month. For instance, Pi Day in March is listed for 3/14 and Star Wars Day 5/4 is listed, along with at least one thing – and sometimes multiple things – for each day. 

Looking ahead, May 29 catches my eye. Apparently it is

I have questions. 

So, a quick search tells me that it’s meant for luck. You are literally supposed to put your pillow in the fridge for “the magic” to work.

My first thought: do people actually have enough room in their refrigerators to put a pillow? Mine is usually much too full for that.

I looked in my graphics subscriptions for “Put a Pillow in your Fridge Day” and the results were fascinating. One of them gave me zero results; as expected. But the second and third gave me pictures of Valentine’s Cards and Skydivers. Things that made no sense. But then, why would they? The whole premise is nonsense. 

That got me thinking about business. What do we do that really doesn’t make any sense? Are we depending on a funny tradition or luck to bring in more business? Or do we have some methods and practices that are just flat nonsense? 

In December, I got an email from a service that I use and I thought it said that the “free” package that I was currently using was going to be going away. It was my last chance to upgrade for the current low price. I dutifully went to the site and upgraded. Months later, I realized that the “free” package is still available. I downgraded immediately. 

Are you using services that are costing too much? Is there a better option? A cheaper or even a free option?

Are you doing other things that made sense at one time, but now they really don’t? Perhaps your store hours or working hours were created to work around your children’s school activities. But your children have left the nest and your hours are the same.

Maybe you’re using equipment that is outdated. It made sense to use multiple devices a decade ago; but now there are all-in-one options.

Well, I don’t know about you; but I won’t be putting pillows in my fridge. But I think I will take stock of the services I use and the equipment and office space and see what I can change that will improve productivity. After all, we all want to work smarter, not harder, right?

1. Have you ever heard of “Put your Pillow in the Fridge Day”? Do you think you’ll try it?
2. What are some other crazy “days” that you know of?
3. Why do you think Valentines and Skydivers came up in the graphics search?