By Megan Boyle, Senior Content Manager at Bolton SEO agency, The Audit Lab
Whether you love it or hate it, working from home has become the new norm in 2021 for thousands of people all across the country.
The upsides? Working in comfies, working from bed, doing yoga on your lunch break and giving your pet cuddles.
But the downsides? Itโs possible that your manager may use the remote working situation as an excuse to make you feel obligated to answer messages before or after hours, to work longer hours or employ a guilt-trip when you step away from your laptop.
So, if youโre finding that the line between your work life and personal life is starting to blur, or if you feel your boss is crossing some serious boundaries, itโs time to reset.
Hereโs six tell-tale signs that you may need to have a chat with your manager about your limits.
1. Youโre contacted well past working hours
Ok, so weโre realistic here. Everyone checks their emails at home after theyโve sat down for dinner. Everyone replies to work texts on the weekend. And letโs face it, if you use Slack then chances are youโve got the app on your phone, too.
Aah Slack, youโre a blessing yet a curse.
If you find that youโre constantly receiving (and expected to reply to) messages from your manager or co-workers in the evenings or on weekends, when the working day is clearly over, then this is a red flag.
The first step here is to set some boundaries yourself. Disconnect your emails from your phone or turn off notifications on Slack when you leave the office. If youโre still getting messages late into the evening, thatโs when you may need to communicate your boundaries. Sometimes all it takes is a simple โThanks! Iโm offline now for the rest of the evening but Iโll get back to you / get that over to you when Iโm online tomorrow morning.โ
2. Your absence is noted
Youโre fully entitled to breaks when you work from home. You are 100% allowed to still take your hour lunch, make yourself a snack, or even go for a walk to clear your head. So, if your manager starts making you feel bad for being away from your laptop, thatโs your second red flag. It shows that thereโs a lack of trust in you and your ability to do your work. Of course, if youโre missing deadlines or skipping scheduled meetings then thatโs another conversation, but you still have every right to take a break no matter where youโre working from.
If you find that this continues, then itโs time to have an honest conversation with your manager about why theyโre always on your case. Chances are they arenโt doing it maliciously; a lot of business owners or managers are feeling a loss of control that they arenโt able to manage you as closely as they used to. Itโs an awkward conversation, for sure! But you shouldnโt be made to feel like youโre doing something wrong just because you take a 15-minute break from your screen.
3. Theyโre too friendly
Itโs perfectly ok to be friends with your manager, as long as it feels appropriate to both sides. But at the end of the day, they are still your boss and thatโs a boundary that needs to remain in place.
Maybe you feel comfortable talking about your life outside of work, but if you start to feel obligated to respond to messages that arenโt related to work, especially if itโs having an impact on your workload or is intruding on your home life, then itโs time to have words.
Remember, you arenโt being paid to be your bossโ friend.
4. Your workday magically extends
When you work from home, your commute disappears, but that doesnโt (and shouldnโt) mean that your workday magically extends. If youโre suddenly finding meetings dropping into your diary when you would normally be travelling into the office, raise it with your manager and remind them that your working hours havenโt changed.
5. Your work and home life are blending
Separating your work life and home life when you work from home is difficult. Itโs harder to maintain boundaries and it can be tricky to disconnect from work when you donโt have that commute or different view to help you get into the different mindsets. And as tempting as it is to answer emails while you catch up from Netflix or check Slack when youโre in bed, itโs a red flag that things are becoming too blended.
The recent loss of the office has somehow transformed our home lives into the โforever officeโ. Weโll still be getting messages when weโre eating, doing bath time with the kids or doing our morning workout. And thatโs a major remote working culture problem.
While many articles will recommend turning off your phone, silencing notifications or even putting your device in a drawer, you shouldnโt have to physically separate yourself from your belongings. So, if itโs getting to this point, itโs time to have an honest conversation with the powers that be.
6. Scepticism emerges
Do you feel a little guilty when you add a doctorโs appointment to your calendar? Do you get messages asking for some kind of verification about your requested time off? Please remember, regardless of whether youโre in the office or working from home, you are entitled to time off for illness and doctorโs appointments.
Your life is your own, even when work starts to bleed over into your home life. To avoid becoming burnt out and stressed, itโs important that you set your own boundaries and stick to them no matter what.
Photo by Nathan Dumlao on Unsplash.
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