Sometimes, it seems impossible to create work-related boundaries when you work in sports. But boundaries are necessary and important. Boundaries allow us to help people learn how to treat us, how to value us, and allow you to show up in all the areas of your life in a healthier way. So, while boundaries can feel like a “bad” word, they are actually good for you and for the work environment.
Here are a few strategies to consider:
Is it you or is it the demands of your job? Sometimes we say that it is the work environment that demands all our time and attention, but was it really necessary for you to send that 2am email? Self-assess for a moment.
How many of your boundary-less moments are because of the demands of the job, versus you just not knowing when to turn things off? Pay attention to yourself. Give yourself some transition time between work and home. For some, it could be giving yourself 15 more minutes to drive on your commute or pulling over and sitting in the parking lot of your neighborhood park. Give yourself time and space to decompress — and leave work at work.
Set a timer! Give yourself time to respond to emails or write down the things that are left undone or on your mind from work. Make sure the timer is set for nothing more than 15 minutes. Once the timer goes off, give yourself space to focus on who or what is in front of you. If you have to respond to something, set the timer with less time to guide what you are doing.
Use the tools at your disposal. Set up auto-messenger so that you don’t feel pressured to respond to everything that comes in on email. If you are a supervisor, set emails to go out at 8 the next morning instead of 8PM that evening.
Sometimes we have to be available at different hours and some jobs require different expectations, but that is not ALL of the time. So, make the decision to set a boundary this month. Just one. You can do it!
