Did you know that your relationship with your supervisor is one of the most influential factors in job satisfaction? Practicing effective workplace communication and setting healthy boundaries can make a major difference for your career wellness!
Start by reflecting on your own needs in order to determine what types of boundaries will be most helpful or necessary. You can do this in a variety of contexts including work, school, and in your relationships.
To reflect on your needs, think about areas of your life in which you need extra help or support. Reflect on what your ideal scenario or outcome would be. Is something missing in an aspect of your life, whether that be professional or personal? Do you have wants or needs that are currently unfulfilled?
Think about if you have any commitments, responsibilities, or roles in which you feel overextended, overwhelmed, or unbalanced. What would help improve the situation? It may also be helpful to define your priorities and determine where you can take a step back or decrease your level of commitment. What is required of you and what can you change?
Try to make this self-reflection on-going. Your wants and needs may change over time, and it is important to check in with yourself.
While boundaries will look different for everyone, some examples may include:
- Setting boundaries around not being contacted or not responding during non-business hours and time off.
- Ex: Not checking email or responding to messages after 5:00pm on weekdays or on the weekends and holidays.
- Setting boundaries around work hours.
- Ex: Creating a hard stop for yourself at 5:00pm.
- Setting reasonable expectations surrounding response times to communication.
- Ex: Set an expectation to respond to emails within 48 hours during business hours (unless there are extenuating circumstances).
- Setting limits for how much work you will take on or how involved you will be.
- Setting expectations for workplace behavior and communication.
- Setting expectations for how much time you can spend with a partner, friend, or loved one.
- Ex: Every Friday night is family game night, or every Saturday is date night.
- Once you have identified boundaries, the next step is to clearly communicate them. If this step sounds scary, start out by practicing! If you find it helpful to document your boundaries to practice, you can always create a list for yourself. Reminder: it is okay to ask for what you need!
One potential strategy for communicating your boundaries is to frame this as a collaborative process. This can take place during an open conversation with your supervisor and coworkers, friends, family members, classmates, and partners and gives each person an opportunity to define expectations. However, this does not mean that you need to compromise or be less assertive with your own boundaries.
Finally, it can be helpful to develop a strategy for communicating effectively when boundary violations occur. For example, if a supervisor reaches out to you with a meeting request on your day off, be prepared for how you will respond and navigate the situation. This may look like respectfully yet firmly declining the request and explaining that you had previously discussed taking the day off and will not be available. You do not need to apologize or over-explain.
If you are struggling to set boundaries or figure out what your personal needs are, contact the Student Wellness Center’s Wellness Coaching program to schedule a free one-on-one session for support.
References
- https://smallbusiness.chron.com/benefits-boundaries-workplace-10748.html
- https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/organization/our-insights/the-boss-factor-making-the-world-a-better-place-through-workplace-relationships
- https://www.npr.org/2021/01/25/960423678/how-to-set-boundaries-with-family-and-stick-to-them
-Lucy Hennon, Graduate Student Assistant