7 WAYS TO DISCONNECT FROM WORK AND WHY IT’S IMPORTANT

If you work shifts, flexitime or from home, it’s becoming harder all the time to keep your private time your own. How do you disconnect from work? Here are some ideas.

Starting last month, thousands of civil servants in Belgium no longer have to answer calls or e-mails from their bosses outside working hours. A new law gives them “the right to disconnect”. The government says it was done to fight "excessive work stress and burn-out”.

Last year, Ireland made a law that workers have the right not to do work routinely outside normal working hours and they cannot be punished for refusing.

Many countries are looking at ways to protect the work-life balance of their staff these days, especially since the pandemic has changed the way many of us want to work.

But it’s not easy – and until a law comes to protect you, you have to look out for yourself.

Here are tips on disconnecting from work. You have to – for your own mental well-being and your family life.

1. GET AN ALARM CLOCK
Don’t use the phone to wake up because you know you’ll just be checking notifications and messages right away. This is a terrible way to start the day. Charge your phone in another room and wake up instead to an alarm clock. Create a morning routine you look forward to and don’t turn your phone on until it’s done.

2. GET READY TO STOP
When you’re working from home, set an alarm to tell you there are 30 minutes left before you clock out. At the office, you’ll see other people getting ready to go, but you don’t have those hints at home. Losing track of time while working is not a good thing. Usually, it means you keep going far too long.

3. PLAN THE NEXT DAY
It’s hard to switch off with the day's issues and the next challenges in your head. So write down a list of things you’ll do tomorrow. Mark the most important ones. Now your brain can finally chill.

4. DON’T RESPOND IF IT’S NOT URGENT
If you answer every message right away, people will start expecting you to be available at all times. Only answer if it absolutely can’t wait until morning. If you worry you’ll forget what you wanted to say, type a draft but don’t send it. Also, don’t message colleagues after hours as a courtesy.

5. UNPLUG WITH A PASTIME
Your mind responds to input. If you keep feeding it intense and demanding stuff, it stays on high alert. Power down your brain after work by doing something you love and can get lost in, such as a hobby. What you do isn’t the issue – it’s consistency. Repeat the same actions every day to create a neurological association that work is over.

Related article: Garden for your mental and physical health

6. SKIP SOCIAL MEDIA ON WEEKENDS
Go outside, socialise, take a walk without your phone. Enjoy the satisfaction of getting a chore done. Social media on weekends is just alarming world news and perfect people bragging about their lovely lives. You can’t save the world and living life isn’t a competition. So do your own thing and enjoy it.

Related article: How does social media affect your mental health?