6 ms·

> After this three-week experiment, I think that work-life balance—a balance that might not even exist in traditional workplaces anymore—might look more like le

> After this three-week experiment, I think that work-life balance—a balance that might not even exist in traditional workplaces anymore—might look more like leaving our work, physically or metaphorically, at our desks when we go home. This is so important to me. Working from home sounds luxurious, but when I tried it it felt more like living at work. You need to be able to draw a hard line between the times and spaces where you work, and the ones where your time is your own.

ghaff 8y ago
Different people have different needs. Some certainly find structure to be important whether that means hard limits between work and personal life or any other type of separation of activities. However, others (and I put myself in this category) are pretty good at setting informal limits while being flexible about it. I tend to work 9-5ish at home but I'll run a daytime errand if I need to and spend some time in the evening if it makes sense.
sixstringtheory 8y ago
Before I went fully remote, I would always leave my laptop at work when I went home for the day (except for on call rotation). It always surprised my coworkers, almost all of whom took their machines home nearly daily. I won’t judge people for that, but can’t help but feel like an outsider with that kind of social pressure.
- rootusrootus 8y ago
  I haven't quite gone that far, I do pretend to take my laptop home each day (the company policy basically requires they be taken home, or locked up). It only makes it as far as the trunk of my car, though, and no exceptions unless dire emergency :)
- _red 8y ago
  I don't really have an opinion on whether or not you should take your laptop home, but I just wanted to point out this imaginary line between "work" and "home life" is a total modern construct. Tell your distant great grandfather, you know the small farmer in rural europe in the 1700s, that the cows just escaped the pen and see if he says "But its saturday evening, I'm off the clock".
  - jeromegv 8y ago
    The farmer typically owns their business, which is different. As for the old farmers in Europe that were paying "rent" to a landlord to use their land, this was almost considered slavery according to modern standard. As for the farm worker that is hired, you can be sure they don't bring the cows home with them.
    - Aeolun 8y ago
      I think you should hire more passionate farm workers.
  - dxhdr 8y ago
    > Tell your distant great grandfather, you know the small farmer in rural europe in the 1700s, that the cows just escaped the pen and see if he says "But its saturday evening, I'm off the clock". He probably would if they were someone else's cows.
    - JoeAltmaier 8y ago
      Actually I have neighbors that will leave the cows to their own devices on Sunday. Amish, and strict about it.
ljm 8y ago
Maintaining healthy boundaries (whatever those are for you) is hard work no matter how you look at it. When the time you give to your employer ends and the time you give to yourself begins is one such boundary. I think of it that way because work and life aren't two separate things—work exists within life—and neither do they balance equally. Work always demands a greater chunk of your time, whether it warrants it or not. If such a boundary is crossed and it is one that you find important, then you might recognise that much sooner than if you're thinking about balance, because you can start getting into specifics and where exactly you do draw the line instead of attempting to rationalise something you might not like. At that point, it's not just work asking for longer hours, or flexibility on weekends; it's also stuff like your colleagues sending you messages and emails at 11pm or 2am, eating lunch at your desk, not taking holidays, hackathons (if those even happen any more!), being expected to be on call, leaving the office at 7pm instead of 5.30pm as the contract states, etc. And after that, if you find work to becoming ever more intrusive, then the boundary system gives you enough info to recognise that this isn't really a 'work' problem, it's the same kind of shit you get in any unhealthy relationship and your working relationships are no exception.

ghaff 8y ago

Different people have different needs. Some certainly find structure to be important whether that means hard limits between work and personal life or any other type of separation of activities. However, others (and I put myself in this category) are pretty good at setting informal limits while being flexible about it. I tend to work 9-5ish at home but I'll run a daytime errand if I need to and spend some time in the evening if it makes sense.

sixstringtheory 8y ago

Before I went fully remote, I would always leave my laptop at work when I went home for the day (except for on call rotation). It always surprised my coworkers, almost all of whom took their machines home nearly daily. I won’t judge people for that, but can’t help but feel like an outsider with that kind of social pressure.

rootusrootus 8y ago
I haven't quite gone that far, I do pretend to take my laptop home each day (the company policy basically requires they be taken home, or locked up). It only makes it as far as the trunk of my car, though, and no exceptions unless dire emergency :)
_red 8y ago
I don't really have an opinion on whether or not you should take your laptop home, but I just wanted to point out this imaginary line between "work" and "home life" is a total modern construct. Tell your distant great grandfather, you know the small farmer in rural europe in the 1700s, that the cows just escaped the pen and see if he says "But its saturday evening, I'm off the clock".
- jeromegv 8y ago
  The farmer typically owns their business, which is different. As for the old farmers in Europe that were paying "rent" to a landlord to use their land, this was almost considered slavery according to modern standard. As for the farm worker that is hired, you can be sure they don't bring the cows home with them.
  - Aeolun 8y ago
    I think you should hire more passionate farm workers.
- dxhdr 8y ago
  > Tell your distant great grandfather, you know the small farmer in rural europe in the 1700s, that the cows just escaped the pen and see if he says "But its saturday evening, I'm off the clock". He probably would if they were someone else's cows.
  - JoeAltmaier 8y ago
    Actually I have neighbors that will leave the cows to their own devices on Sunday. Amish, and strict about it.

ljm 8y ago

Maintaining healthy boundaries (whatever those are for you) is hard work no matter how you look at it. When the time you give to your employer ends and the time you give to yourself begins is one such boundary. I think of it that way because work and life aren't two separate things—work exists within life—and neither do they balance equally. Work always demands a greater chunk of your time, whether it warrants it or not. If such a boundary is crossed and it is one that you find important, then you might recognise that much sooner than if you're thinking about balance, because you can start getting into specifics and where exactly you do draw the line instead of attempting to rationalise something you might not like. At that point, it's not just work asking for longer hours, or flexibility on weekends; it's also stuff like your colleagues sending you messages and emails at 11pm or 2am, eating lunch at your desk, not taking holidays, hackathons (if those even happen any more!), being expected to be on call, leaving the office at 7pm instead of 5.30pm as the contract states, etc. And after that, if you find work to becoming ever more intrusive, then the boundary system gives you enough info to recognise that this isn't really a 'work' problem, it's the same kind of shit you get in any unhealthy relationship and your working relationships are no exception.