When you enjoy your work there can be a natural bent towards encouraging it to become all absorbing. This can also happen if things are going very wrong at work. 

Last week I was really inspired by a book from the guys at Basecamp. This, along with the writings of Cal Newport, has given me the head knowledge to recognize the need for setting boundaries in my work and my life. However, an intellectual acceptance of something, and even at times wholehearted actions to take things in that direction, isn’t always enough. It’s easy to get busy, to get into your work and not come up for air. 

Over the past two weeks I’ve gone back to practicing a separation. On Friday afternoon I stop my work, and I don’t check email or Slack until Monday morning. In addition, each afternoon after work I turn off Slack and email (notifications especially, I don’t have those anymore) and don’t check until morning. If previous attempts at this are any indication, the most likely culprit for falling back into previous patterns is an upcoming event or deadline. 

My goal is to see if I can identify the things that trip me up and work to prevent them. If I’m able to stop thinking about work when I’m away from it, I can focus on other things I care about; leaving me fresh and ready to tackle work again the next morning.