New week, new reminder
Reminder:
Setting boundaries, communicating those boundaries, and being relentless in maintaining them are key elements to protecting your time and energy. I am very protective of my time both personally and professionally. A few things that help me personally:
- Do Not Disturb: So that I’m not getting distracted by alerts, calls, text messages, etc. and creating a consistent routine – especially since I experience insomnia regularly, I set an automated time period where Do Not Disturb is on daily between 10pm – 9am the next morning. The exception being emergency contacts can reach me.
- Response Time: I will not respond to text messages – excluding emergencies – once Do Not Disturb turns on. I may glance at the message but 9/10 will not respond. Also, I try not to respond to messages that aren’t time sensitive as soon as I recieve them. Of course there are some exceptions, however, I’m actively working to rid myself of the anxiety around feeling the need to respond right away.
- Invitations: Last minute invites are rude as they are not considerate of the other persons time; I mean, it’s not like I spend my days sitting around waiting for someone to invite me somewhere. Likewise, it gives the impression that the invitee is an afterthought. I will not accept last minute invitations…last minute as in the day of though I tend to apply a blanket 24 hour rule to that. Hear me out: I have anxiety and plan out my days in advance for structure and for my mental wellness. Sure, things will come up but having that foundation in place – even if my plan is to do nothing – brings me a sense of peace. Likewise, I absolutely detest rushing, particularly if it’s to meet the timing of someone else’s poor planning. Most of the time, if I’m invited somewhere the day of, I’ll say no. Again, there are exceptions to that, however, 90% of the time, that is my boundary. Why should I drop everything because of someone elses lack of planning skills and respect for others time?
Professionally, I am highly protective of my time, which is something that’s taken me years to feel confident enough to communicate. Again, there are times you have to make an exception. However, setting boundaries and being comfortable saying “No” is healthy and necessary. For instance, put a meeting on my calendar with no agenda that’s over 25 minutes long and/or scheduled over an existing time block (the one’s that do that on days that you’re clearly out of office really grind my gears): I will diplomatically and candidly push back. I could list the key things I do, but this article from Harvard Business Review (HBR) is a pretty solid summary.
Short read: “Protect Your Time at Work by Setting Boundaries”
How do you protect your time? Share in the comments!
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