Untethering From Your Mobile: Escaping Work to Live Life

Whether you’re an entry-level employee trying to climb the ladder as fast as possible or a manager catering to a slew of employees, the workforce is under increasing pressure to be continually available.

The office may not collapse without you, there are other ramifications of taking time for yourself to consider. If you don’t answer your phone after work, but your coworker does, are you being reasonable or do you look less dedicated? If you’re a teacher who’s not accessible on the weekends, are you promoting balance or being unsupportive?

It may be difficult to draw the line between dedicated and overworked, but it’s a distinction that everyone will benefit from. Silencing your phone and closing your laptop after work may be the secret to returning refreshed, empowered, and more productive than ever.

Digital Detox
At first, it seems like leaving your phone behind may bring more harm than good. Many people experience an initial surge of negative emotions. Anxiety kicks in as soon as you’re disconnected—what if you miss out on something important, or someone really needs to get ahold of you?

Next comes the boredom. Who even remembers what they did before they had Netflix streaming to their phone? Some people even get cranky without their fix. Checking your phone stimulates dopamine centers in your brain, and we’re wired to want more dopamine.

Slowly, though, the nerves, boredom, and crankiness start to fade. In it’s place, you may find peace, joy, and a little more mindfulness as you adapt to life without constant digital influence. You may even notice your natural rhythm taking over without the disruption of blue light that cell phone manufacturers have been trying to overcome with recent models.

It may be common to see your peers taking vacations to “digitally detox” by leaving their phones at home and abandoning their email accounts for a few days. While taking a break is definitely beneficial, the upsides of unplugging don’t have to come in an all-or-nothing situation.

Technology breaks can be worked into your daily life. Utilizing little habits to create boundaries institutes a sense of control and allow you to reap the benefits of unplugging without going off the grid entirely.

Set Boundaries
Start by setting some boundaries for yourself. These won’t be the same for everyone, so think about what will work best for you and your life before settling on any changes.

A solid place to start is to deactivate any work notifications when you leave work. Don’t check your work email and don’t respond to instant messages. Let coworkers know that you don’t entertain work after work hours, but that if a true emergency arises, they’ll need to contact you by calling.

If you truly can’t leave work at work, set limits for what you can do when you’re not at the office. Maybe you’re allowed to check your email once after dinner. Or maybe you give yourself thirty minutes of work time for every eight hours you’re not at the office.

The same concepts apply to weekends. Try to be work free and enjoy your personal time—that’s what weekends are for, after all. You’ll be more productive come Monday if you truly let your brain refresh itself.

An easy way to encourage detox time is to create havens for yourself.

Dedicate space in your home for decompression. Your area can come in any form you want, so long as it is distinctly dedicated to anything except work. A quiet room for arts and crafts or settling in with the perfect book might be just the encouragement you need to leave work behind without feeling guilty. Or, if you have kids to entertain, consider the benefits of a backyard pool—who can say no to sunbathing, tiring the kids out, and quality family time all at once?

Plan Ahead
Before you jump into your wireless weekends, make sure you plan ahead.

If you’re leaving for vacation and you plan to be completely inaccessible, consider your timing. Every business has busy seasons, so consider the impact your absence will have before setting dates. Similarly, if you’re about to stop checking email on weekends, make sure it’s not the weekend before a big project is due. This will ensure minimal stress for everyone.

Be sure impacted parties know changes are coming. For vacations, set an out-of-office notice for your email and instant messaging. Introduce clients to who they’ll be contacting if they need anything while you’re gone. The same goes for cutting off contact outside business hours—make sure your coworkers know what to do and have lead time to adjust.

Finally, set a disaster plan. No one likes to think about the worst happening, but it’s better to be prepared than caught off guard. Walk through what disaster might strike after hours or during the duration of your vacation and set an action plan to cope with it.

Once all that’s done, go get some wireless freedom. Enjoy being in the moment and not on your phone—unless you’re taking pictures for posterity, that is.

Photo by Raw Pixel