How constant work connectivity affects our loved ones.
With the connectivity provided by cell phones and laptops, most people remain in constant communication with their work. In the U.S., it has become the norm to answer emails and phone calls during what have traditionally been considered non-working hours. There is unspoken peer pressure to respond quickly, as if to prove our dedication to the business.
While sometimes it is necessary to conduct business during non-working hours, such as to connect with international customers, get a late order out or handle an emergency. Other times, it is something that can wait but that we choose to act on right away. There is a cost to this choice- not being truly present with the people we care about.
If you take a minute and put yourself in their shoes, you will see how unreliable and disengaged you are to them. They begin to write you off as having to work and therefore not being available to spend quality time with them.
Not only that, you may have been counted on to play a role in a weekend or vacation activity, and now, plans must be changed or others carry more of the burden to accommodate the urgent 1 p.m. work call that just popped up or the file that must be completed and sent out at the last minute.
So, how can we better manage our 24/7 working habits? It all comes down to discipline:
Let’s put ourselves in our loved one’s shoes and see what it feels like to interact with us.
Let’s be better at carving out uninterrupted time with our grandparents, parents, siblings, spouses, children, friends, pets…
Let’s be fully present during that carved out time.
Let’s learn to distinguish what is absolutely necessary and what is not when it comes to working during “off” hours.
When we are so focused on our careers, we often forget to nurture our personal relationships and time passes by- kids grow up fast, spouses become distant, and parents and grandparents aren’t around forever. However, if we stop allowing work to invade our personal time, we will find joy and happiness in being truly there for those we love and won’t have any regrets later in life.