This has nothing to do with my post. It is hilarious though...

This has nothing to do with my post. It is hlarious though...

While I am a big fan of technology and email, sometimes I have realized I just need a break from it all.  I always feel obligated to check work and personal email and find myself a tad stressed out when I let too much time go by without “checking in” on my emails.  This is something I have declared I will work on!

Thinking back on the vacation that husby and I took last March, I was a little freaked out before we left knowing that the entire time I would be without email or my cell phone (a laptop and a phone won’t do you much good on a cruise in the middle of the ocean).  After getting over the habitual reach for my phone at certain times of the day, I started to embrace not having to worry about making calls or checking email.  I started to feel sort of… free!

In an effort to regain a fraction of this feeling of technological free-ness, I’m laying down some ground rules for myself to see how things go. 

Here they are:

  • No checking work email after 7:00 pm.
  • No checking work or personal email at any dining or entertainment facilities (yes, I am that person who checks email at the table in a restaurant) or family gatherings.
  • No checking of work email on Sundays AT ALL.  Sunday is going to be my email free day.  I may relax in front of the computer to read my favorite blogs on Sunday morning, but after that I am refusing to check email or stress over anything.  Sundays will be my total relaxation days.
  • No phone calls or email checking in the morning while I’m getting ready for work.  I’ve noticed that this causes unnecessary stress so if my phone rings I’m not going to answer it (unless I get the feeling that it’s an emergency and see that someone is calling me that never calls me in the morning.  If the phone rings and it’s from my mom, I’m NOT getting it in the morning because she calls me way too often for no apparent reason in the morning.  Sorry Mom).  I’m not checking email either because I’ve noticed it sets a negative tone for me because I start to think about what I need to do for the day and how I am going to schedule and structure my day.  My morning time at home is mine and I will wait until I get to work to start worrying about how I will get my work stuff done.

We will see how my new rules pan out.  I’m not expecting myself to follow them perfectly (although I will try), but I want to establish boundaries for myself because, like I’ve said before, balance is the key to everything.  I would love to be able to balance everything in a healthy way and think that there’s no better time to start than today.  Once my rules become habits, I won’t need rules anymore– everything will be second nature.  I’m looking forward to this :)

…Because I’m addicted to email and I need help…