Billionaire financier and New York Mets co-owner Steve Cohen made headlines with his CNBC interview in which he predicted a four-day workweek will soon become the norm. This belief, he says, influenced his decision to invest in a golf startup league, anticipating a four-day workweek would lend itself to more leisure time on the course. Perhaps more investors would be wise to be long on fun too — here’s why.
In a recent Wall Street Journal article, I reached the same conclusion as Cohen: a four-day workweek is on the horizon, driven by advancements in artificial intelligence and automation. This belief was informed by recent business surveys and the book “The End of Work” by John Tamny, which, in 2018, predicted a four-day workweek even before the surge of remote and hybrid work options we see today. Tamny noted that, up until the 1930s, the United States had a six-day workweek, which was brought down to five by increases in automation.
It took a hundred years — but we’re finally chopping another day off.
But Cohen and Tamny’s agreement appears to extend even further. In “The End of Work,” Tamny describes how the U.S. labor market has evolved — starting as an agricultural economy, evolving into a manufacturing economy, and eventually moving into a service economy. The book predicts the next economy will be “the entertainment economy.”
This is because workers — who will increasingly be employed in jobs that never feel like work because they actually enjoy doing them — will have higher pay and more leisure time, which means they’ll desire more entertainment in all forms. Including golf.
Simultaneously, technology is decentralizing the entertainment industry (thus lowering Hollywood’s market share on fame) by eliminating barriers that prevent people from making music, movies, streaming channels and assorted content.
Taken together, it’s easy to see that the supply and demand for, as Cohen put in his interview, “leisure, travel and experiences” will naturally increase in our dynamic future economy. In other words, all the fun things.
There is an investment lesson in all of this.
Even more important, there might be a lesson for anyone nervous about pursuing their passion and turning their hobby into a job. Whatever you do best, whatever you love to do — the market for fun is set for a massive bull run. Get in early.
Thank you, Steve Cohen, for sharing this optimistic glimpse into how the nature of work is evolving for the better. In the future with more leisure time, I know how my Dad will spend his — sailing and watching the Mets.
