Ping. It’s the sound of your email, Microsoft Teams or Slack notification interrupting you during what’s supposed to be a relaxing family vacation or a fun-filled, let-it-all-hang-out friends trip. You know you shouldn’t respond (c’mon, you’re out of the office for a reason, right?) and yet you can’t help yourself from peeking (maybe it’s important!).
So you answer, and next thing you know you’re spending your time off, well, back on the clock. Setting firm work-life boundaries has become increasingly difficult in the modern world, where technology makes it all too easy to be in the know with your coworkers—even after hours. Plus the pandemic made WFH a new norm, transforming many people’s personal spaces from safe havens to remote offices.
But as simple as it is to skim that message while you’re basking in the sun at the beach or to reply to just one more email from the comfort of your cosy mountainside Airbnb, these seemingly harmless habits can actually sabotage your vacation, says Dawna Ballard, PhD, associate professor of communications at the University of Texas at Austin and co-author of Work Pressures: New Agendas in Communication. “Taking time off from your job should not be seen as a ‘luxury’ reserved for certain people,” Dr. Ballard says.
“This common belief that rest is something ‘extra,’ as opposed to necessary to our mental and physical health, is a toxic mindset.” If you don’t believe her, take a look at these pretty conv.