Work - Do You Really Switch Off?

Switch off.

No e-mails. No text messages. Occasional phone call if its really urgent.

Only have t'internet at home and a very basic mobile phone only used for calls and texting.

Having gone from a very well-paid but stressful job where I was expected to be on call 24-7 to penurious self employment, I switch off when I want to.

This may account for the fact that I have very little money. But I am better off.

Sadly, no, I rarely switch off completely.  As an IT sales rep, I have to be available to my customers, peers and business partners, 7x24x365. It's a high pressure job, and I really don't distinguish between work time and "my" time. But at least I can get a lot done at home. Also, the money's good, and if I want a raise, all I have to do is sell more!

ATB.

Hook

Strangely I seem to be more switched on since retiring, maybe it's because I'm near MY computer and have more interesting things to chat about than when I worked.

Friggin' sales calls or no one there calls do get a bit much though. 

I do study and reading/prep work at home. I'm at work 13hrs a day so have no desire to any more than that. I do go in some weekends to catch up.

I have no access to work email or patient records at home-and don't want them either!

Bruce

As per my profile been retired 5 years now,and dont miss it at all,the time as just flown by. I still get plenty of invites to various trade functions etc and they go strait in the bin.

 Just the thought of work now brings me out in a nasty rash.........i feel a rash starting,do we have any Docs on this M/B ?

Mista h

+1 Idem here.

When I was in the UK, I often worked overtime without extra pay, one to five hours a week extra. On occasions I also worked Saturdays without overtime pay, but this is pretty normal in the Architectural arena...in the UK.

Here in Norway, you will get payed for your overtime and nobody in their right mind would work on a Saturday, in fact most Norwegians, if at all possible, will leave work by lunchtime on Friday. If ever there was a 4 day week, the closest I have come to it is in Norway. Very, very annoying if one requires an eye specialist on Friday afternoon in Oslo, because they have all gone home. There is also very limited civil construction work activity on Friday afternoons.

But I don't believe in giving employees work telephones where they can be contacted at home at any time. I am a big believer in work/home separation and in my case I make a point of letting go, unless of course it is very important to reach a deadline or there is a particular problem to solve and then I will stay awake thinking about it.

But on the whole,  I switch completely off, it's the only way for me to relax.

Jason.

The ubiquity of mobile phones and email makes this work/life split a real issue for many. I see lots of people for whom it is a major factor in the development of stress-related illness. Being self-employed makes it all much harder too.

I strongly advise people to have clear boundaries. Work smart, work efficiently and then switch it all off go home.

Bruce

Very hard to do in some jobs Bruce. Other half although she has been retired for many years now worked on software for IBM mainframe computers, for several large banks. On more than one ocasion our phone at home has rung at an ungodly hour,like 2am,can she get a cab and go into work. Dont need it.

Mista h

For Jason. Scripted by someone on the inside. G

.....just to clarify, before I splurt my tea all over the kitchen table.......

this "only 47 days" excludes weekends and Bank Holidays ?

In other words you work a 5 day week, 52 weeks of the year minus 9 weeks and 2 days and also minus any Bank Holidays of which there are 8 such days in the normal English calendar, meaning here you would work 41 weeks a year and have 11 weeks holiday ?

Cheers

Don

Brilliant Graham, that pretty much sums it up....who is Frank Garry?

Jason.

Yes, I thought that was a typ.

Jason.

I only work half days. Out of every 24 hours, I usually have 12 to myself. When my clients don't need work I don't work and when they do, I do. It can be challenging at times, boring at other times but over the medium term it balances out. I'm in the slack day no pay self employed  camp, and I wouldn't have it any other way.