Importance of Setting Up Healthy Work Boundaries

Have you ever experienced hesitation in expressing yourself?

Were there times when you ended up juggling several tasks just because you couldn’t say “no”?

There probably have been times when you overstretched yourself, which could lead to burnout.

There are several situations we come across daily. From dealing with our co-workers to working with our superiors, we have plenty of work and work-related duties to accomplish.

If you are experiencing a hard time with your schedules or are getting overworked, you’re possibly forgetting to consider a few things.

Your work directly impacts your life. Creating healthy boundaries in the office may give you the salary you need to maintain a certain lifestyle and dictate the quality of your personal life

What is meant by work boundaries?

Setting boundaries is like establishing a limit to take control over one’s personal and work life. When it comes to managing work hours, working style and more, everyone has a different way of approaching work. It is an important practice to have control over how one accomplishes his/her job. Otherwise, it may lead to a lack of work management which in turn will impact your performance.

What happens when you don’t set work boundaries?

If you don’t take responsibility for your situation, very likely you’ll fall into the unending cycle of work mismanagement. It may also lead to stress and burnout in the long run.

Lack of work boundary means a lack of clarity. If you are constantly saying “yes” when you want to say “no”, if you are postponing a task in hand for socializing just to be a part of a group, then it’s a sign of an absence of work boundary.

Lack of time for oneself- If you lack work boundaries, it is likely that you will end up losing time for yourself. Your work life is crucial for your growth. At the same time, your personal life plays an important role in your holistic development. If you don’t set the right boundaries, you may miss out on some of the things you want to do for “me time”. In the long run, this may even lead to burnout.
Lack of work management- If you are not certain about your strengths and weaknesses, you may lose focus and end up doing things you don’t really excel in. You may also end up compromising on work you’re supposed to do when someone asks you to finish a different task. As a result, you may end up juggling multiple jobs at a time. Attend to any additional task only when your job is done. Learn to prioritize properly.
Burnout- You may end up biting off more than you can chew. With a lack of clarity, it’s easy to be overwhelmed with tasks that can lead to burnout.
Chaotic schedule- Lack of work boundaries may affect your schedule. This may lead to procrastination and eventually impact your performance in a big way.

How can you draw healthy boundaries at work?

Here is how you can create a well-balanced professional life:

Be clear with your priorities – Set your work calendar. Make a to-do list daily. This way, you’ll be able to keep tabs on your priorities. This will help you stay focused on your job without steering away from your goal.
Continuously assess how you work – Everyone works differently. You have to figure out how you can be more efficient in delivering the results that your company needs.
Build relationships – One of the m1ain reasons why it’s hard to create boundaries is the lack of clear communication. Employees usually work in silos which shouldn’t be the case. Employees should work with their Teams as much as possible. A company is a network of people working towards the same goal. Therefore, it’s important to build healthy work relationships with your colleagues. This way, it’ll be easier to talk about work matters and other things that you may want to bring to their attention.
Learn to say “No” – People hesitate to say “no” to their officemates due to fear of not being able to belong.

As a result, they end up not being able to express themselves properly and worse, even not become true to who they are.

This can affect their performance in a significant way. It may also lead to constant pressure to overperform. It can also greatly impact their relationships with others.

Learn to say no if someone is constantly trying to give work during non-working hours or holidays.

Of course, in a professional setting, you cannot bluntly decline a request. There are subtle and better ways to address the same message. For example:-

Situation 1- If you are invited for an informal meeting but you have an urgent project to address:-

“The timing right now isn’t suitable for me as I am on an important project. Shall we catch up later?”

Situation 2- If you are asked to offer your team additional support but cannot help at the moment.

“My current deliverables have my schedule packet at the moment, I am afraid I am unable to provide resources for this.”

“I am currently at capacity, perhaps I can support you next time.”

Emergency cases are different, but if this is happening regularly, it must be addressed.

We hope these tips can put you well on your way to having the professional life you’ve always wanted. Go for it, buddy! We’re here for you. See you again next week!