Thanks to the boom in remote work, hybrid work, and communication apps on our smartphones, working around the clock has become a concern, prompting many to consider how to reclaim their time and return their jobs to their usual 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. working schedules.
According to a Washington Post report, here are the best strategies for organizing your time and balancing work and personal life.
Set boundaries and stick to them
People will not hesitate to take advantage of your desire to work after (or before) work hours, so it’s your responsibility to say “no” and set healthy boundaries.
Sometimes we get so caught up in the hustle and bustle of daily life that we lose sight of those boundaries, ending up responding to emails we see the moment we wake up or feeling pressured to answer a question from a colleague over dinner. Take the time to redefine what you do and don’t accept as part of your job. This might mean sharing your goals with coworkers or family members, who can hold you accountable. You can also set phone reminders to log off or have a conversation with your boss about work-life balance.
You can also communicate your boundaries through your email signature or status message on work communication apps. Clearly outline your work hours, how long you typically respond, and what you should do if it’s urgent.
Schedule Outgoing Messages
Make sure you’re following your own guidelines. If you don’t want to receive messages after hours, whether you’re communicating via Slack, Teams, email, or even text, schedule your messages to be sent at a convenient time. This allows you to keep all your business interactions within working hours.
If you’re using a communication tool that doesn’t allow scheduling, set a reminder on your phone for that time.
Minimize Your Notifications
You’ve told people your preferences (in terms of when you’re busy), now use technology to enforce those preferences.
Change the notification settings on your workplace apps and devices so they don’t make noise while you’re eating dinner or playing with your kids.
Outlook lets you set your work schedule, including your work hours each day. This lets others know when you’re available and when you’re unavailable.
Messaging apps like Slack also let you specify the hours you want to receive (or mute) notifications in preferences.
Your devices let you adjust notification settings for each individual app, so you can get alerts for breaking news but not from your boss.
If you just want to turn everything off, you can always turn on Focus or Do Not Disturb mode on your device for complete silence.
Fill up your calendar
If you’re trying to make sure no one interrupts the precious 30 minutes you take to eat lunch, or that a colleague doesn’t schedule a meeting while you’re dropping your kids off at school, add an event to your calendar.
That way, if someone tries to schedule a meeting when you don’t want it, they’ll see that you’re unavailable and choose a time when you can meet.
You can also block out parts of your calendar if you need time to do work while you’re busy.
Make an emergency plan
While it may be nice to completely stop working when it’s time to leave, you should make sure that important contacts like your boss have a way to reach you at any time.
This might mean giving them your personal phone number, or telling them to text you or send you a message via Signal or another messaging app instead of Slack or email.
You can also change your settings so they can reach you even when Focus Mode or Do Not Disturb is turned on.
Make sure to clarify when they should use these communication methods. They are for urgent matters, not tasks that can be postponed until after your coffee tomorrow morning.
Time Theft!
In this context, Sayed Khader, Director of the Al-Ghad Center for Economic Studies, told Sky News Arabia Economy:
Remote work leads to time theft. Constant communication via messages, calls, and virtual meetings without proper management, along with the lack of clear boundaries between work and personal life, leads to distraction, annoyance, and a lack of discipline and focus when working from home.
Recovering lost time can be achieved by creating a clear daily schedule for tasks and meetings, setting specific times for rest, and choosing a quiet place to work at home. Limiting interruptions and distractions by turning off phone notifications, disabling certain apps, focusing on the most important tasks, and managing time effectively.
Regarding optimal use of technology, Khader says that this comes from relying on digital work tools. To increase productivity and remote collaboration, use task management applications, effective meetings, and enhance interaction, while communicating via video and chat platforms, while ensuring security and privacy.
These applications and tools can also be customized to set boundaries between work and non-work hours, such as turning off work-related alerts while you’re away from your work.
Work Plan
One of the most important factors in good time management and productivity is developing a daily work plan that clearly identifies tasks and priorities, taking into account regular breaks and setting specific times for online communication and meetings to avoid excessive meetings. Distractions should also be minimized by managing notifications, focusing on important tasks, and communicating and socializing, according to Khader.
The director of the Al-Ghad Center for Economic Studies recommends engaging in physical exercise, regular rest, and allocating spaces for work and rest to avoid mixing personal and professional life. He also recommends ensuring the availability of the necessary technical equipment for efficient work, along with skills and professional development, enhancing communication and collaboration skills remotely, and developing leadership and supervision in remote work environments. He also recommends participating in professional development programs appropriate for remote work, focusing on acquiring advanced digital skills and self-management.
The foundation of life, but!
In turn, economic expert Yassin Ahmed says in exclusive statements to Sky News Arabia Economy that work has become a major part of our lives, our time, and our energy, but it remains the foundation of life. We can make it easier for ourselves by using technological mechanisms to organize our work hours and facilitate and accelerate productivity at work.
Technology plays a major role in the labor market, accelerating productivity, while saving time, effort, and costs, according to the economic expert.
Regarding ways to reclaim stolen time, he says that this lies in avoiding modern distractions and time-wasters in traditional work matters, while using modern technological mechanisms, programs, and tools that help you complete your tasks accurately, save and organize your time and effort more quickly.
People need to balance their lives and work. According to Ahmed, time must be carefully divided between work and life. He continues, “Remote work saves time spent commuting between home and work, and it doesn’t differ much in nature whether it’s from home or the workplace. On the contrary, it saves time and effort. Technology and computer programs contribute to making administrative and routine tasks easier and faster than traditional methods.”
He adds, “Using internet services and email facilitates coordination and communication between team members, as well as clients and partners in the organization or project, faster and more clearly. Technology also helps companies save time and costs, increasing productivity, flexibility, accuracy, and speed of performance. Therefore, all of the above will contribute to preserving the original time for the production process and facilitate the development of a plan to separate work and rest hours, whether individual or group work,” according to the economic expert.
