How to Stop Work From Following You Home

By Danielle Wirsansky on February 18, 2017

Once you graduate from college, it is time to enter the dreaded “real world.”

Many students do not take this seriously and do not realize how different life after college can be. Most students work while they are in college, often starting to work in high school. But having a full-time job is very different from a part-time job. If you are not careful, the line between your off hours and when you work can be blurred.

Technology makes communication so easy. You are notified immediately of every message, email, and text. If you noticed it, what could be the harm in opening up that work email? You might think to yourself. What if I answer just one email? Or two? Or three? NO! It is a bad idea.

There needs to be a separation between work and home life so that you actually can have a life outside of work. It can be very stressful to constantly work and never disconnect from that world. Read on to learn how to create distance from your work environment and home environment once you have a full-time job!

pexels.com

Do Not Disturb

It can be hard not to check in to work related things, especially if you hear the messages coming in through the floodgates. Whether it is emails, texts, or more, those notifications can drive you crazy! Some people cannot stand to see notifications on their phone and thus have to open and respond to each and every message just so that the notifications go away. If you are one of these people, there is no shame in that. But it can keep you from completely disconnecting from your full-time job. The work already keeps you from a majority of the daylight hours — do not let it take your evenings too!

If the temptation to open up all the messages you are receiving is too much, then it is time to put your phone on the Do Not Disturb Setting.

According to Apple, “With Do Not Disturb, you can silence calls, alerts, and notifications that you get while your device is locked. You can also schedule a time or choose who you’ll allow calls from … When Do Not Disturb is on, you’ll see a do not disturb in the status bar.

“If you don’t want to be disturbed at a certain time, you can set a schedule. Tap Settings > Do Not Disturb and turn on Scheduled. Then set a time.

You can also choose when you want to receive alerts, calls, and notifications:

•Allow Calls From: Allow calls from everyone, no one, your favorites, or specific contact groups stored on your device or iCloud.

•Repeated Calls: If someone calls you twice within three minutes, the call won’t be silenced.

•Silence: Choose to silence calls and notifications always or only when the device is locked.”

That way you can stay as connected as you want or need to be. You are completely in control but are still within reach of your company if they really and truly need you after hours.

Keep Separate on Social Media

Another good way to stay disconnected from work when you are not at work is to keep separate social media. It can be hard to separate from it though if you are connected to it via social media platforms. From liking the page on Facebook to being friends with or following your coworkers, how can you avoid it? You do not want to be overwhelmed by oversaturated work related media content. You want to support your workplace and you would like to be connected to your co-workers. You also want to keep a professional front on an account associated with your place of business and co-workers.

It might be a good idea then to create separate social media pages on the platforms you still do want to connect with your workplace on. That way you do not have to worry about embarrassing or inappropriate content being seen by your co-workers or being overwhelmed with reminders about work!

pexels.com

A Day of Rest

When all else fails, take a day of rest. It can be any day that you want or that fits your schedule. Weekends are usually the best. Choose one day a week where you will disconnect by not doing any work at all. The body needs time to stop and rejuvenate itself before being thrown back into the full-time working grind.

Your mind needs the rest too. Allow yourself one day of peace where you do not have to worry about anything and you can do whatever it is that you want to. Whether it is having a quiet day at home or an adventure out in the great big somewhere, feed your soul. That way you do not burn out even while working a full-time job.

Follow Uloop

Apply to Write for Uloop News

Join the Uloop News Team

Discuss This Article

Back to Top

Log In

Contact Us

Upload An Image

Please select an image to upload
Note: must be in .png, .gif or .jpg format
OR
Provide URL where image can be downloaded
Note: must be in .png, .gif or .jpg format

By clicking this button,
you agree to the terms of use

By clicking "Create Alert" I agree to the Uloop Terms of Use.

Image not available.

Add a Photo

Please select a photo to upload
Note: must be in .png, .gif or .jpg format