Leaving Work Behind

I wish I can print a business card that says “Just because I work from home doesn’t mean I’m available 24/7“.

Just like any other employee who works 8-5 daily, I also shut down my computer. I’m mostly done with day-to-day tasks by 5PM but I keep my computer open just in case I want to browse for entertainment purposes or play online with my kid. Clients think I’m still available because I’m online. Most of the time, I try to do their requests even if it’s already 9PM. I do this because I care about their projects. I know that even if it’s not a life and death situation, they seem to think that it is so I do my best to accommodate these requests. Some of them even send three hours worth of work just before my bed time. So we both live in different time zones but that doesn’t mean I have to work the same time as them, unless stated in a contract.

I always get online during the weekends with my YM and Gmail set to invisible. Still, I’d get tons of buzzes and offline messages from clients asking if I can fix something. It’s the weekends people. I have a life too. And again, just like any ordinary employee, I don’t “go to work” during weekends. This means you can’t expect to get something done immediately or call me when I’m trying to spend some quality time with the family.

Like I’ve said, I’m not really strict with the schedule. But please don’t think that I’m a computer just because I work virtually.