Are you the kind of person who “leaves work at work” or does it not bother you at all when work tasks are intertwined with everyday activities? By answering this question, you will be able to make your life more harmonious and balanced. And those around you will thank you for it too.
It would seem that today many of us are simply forced to work from home, whether they like this situation or not, and therefore this issue is not as relevant as before. However, here’s the thing: if our work style doesn’t match our type, it can lead to quick burnout and overwork.
How to understand who you are?
Segmenters try to separate work from other areas of life as much as possible, while integrators do not mind returning to work from time to time, even on weekends or vacations, not to mention evenings.
“I can work a little, then spend time with my family or do some household chores, and then go back to work,” says Lawrence Steed, assistant professor of management at the University of Miami.
Steed notes that it is not necessary that each of us is a 100% segmentator or integrator: most often we are talking about the attraction to one or another style of behavior.
In Home and Work: Negotiating Boundaries in Everyday Life, sociologist Kristena Nippert-Eng explains that segmenters often create a clear “watershed” between work and home using different objects. So, they start different diaries for business and everyday tasks, dress differently on weekdays than on weekends, even if the office does not have a strict dress code, and so on.
The author cites the example of Maria, who keeps a diary on her desktop, in which she records important meetings and work tasks. At the same time, she has a calendar hanging on her wall, in which she marks the days of her children’s holidays and the upcoming vacation. Lawrence Steed believes that segmenters simply need to be completely disconnected from work, while it is completely normal for integrators to open a laptop late at night and answer a couple of business emails.
It is quite possible that you are the integrator. In any case, after talking with Google employees as part of her research, Nippert-Eng found out that more than two-thirds of them are rather integrators, for whom “it is sometimes very difficult to tell where work ends and private life begins.”
If you still don’t understand who you are, try observing yourself for a couple of weeks.
“Write down exactly when you work, how much, how much — this will help you finally figure out whether you mix work and private life or clearly separate them,” suggests career consultant Cynthia Pong.
According to her, earlier, most experts advised to strictly separate the spheres of life, but now it is clear that this is not suitable for everyone. Alas, sometimes you have to obey the circumstances. For example, now many are forced to work from home, which means that the boundaries are blurring. And the corporate culture of the company in which we work may force us to work not only in the time allotted for this.
If you manage a team, it is even more important for you to understand that some of your employees may not share your approach to work. Before you write a business letter to someone late at night, ask yourself: “Is it really necessary that I get an answer right away? Shouldn’t it be worth waiting until morning, or at least making a note in the letter that the solution of the issue endures until tomorrow? Steed advises.
Let’s take a break from business
Whatever style of work you choose, you still need to take a break from time to time and recharge. Steed and colleagues reviewed 198 studies and found that taking time off from work improves sleep, general well-being and, ultimately, performance. This rest should include complete disconnection from work, relaxation and conscious pastime.
In addition, it is very important to listen to yourself: what yesterday helped you recharge well, today can deprive you of your last strength. So, sometimes eating with children and reading books to them before bed gives us resources, and sometimes it is exhausting (especially if the children behave very badly).
The length of the break is different for everyone. Segmenters often prefer to close their laptop at 18 or 00 pm and only get back to work the next morning, while integrators are better off taking small breaks during the day, such as to have lunch with a friend or go for a walk. If you find it difficult to finish work, it is useful to come up with a case in advance that will make you shut your laptop. For example, you can buy a subscription to sports classes that start at a certain time. You can invent such things until your free time from work becomes familiar to you.