Remember weekends? Those special times when we left work on a Friday and could forget about everything until Monday morning?
I’m not that old and I barely remember them. Today’s Gen Y workers will go through life not knowing that memory at all.
Work life balance is a fantasy that becomes more and more distant every day.
We’re connected all the time. Blackberrys, iPhones and Android devices have tethered us to our offices. It’s virtually impossible to escape. Work emails come 24 hours a day, all week long. And senders expect a response immediately.
A few weeks back I was thinking about a 9 day camping trip I took back in 2005. I had no access to my phone or my email. It was wonderful.
Could I take 9 days away from my job now? It would be difficult. I know in my brain that the world would go on just fine without me. But being connected is such a huge part of what we’ve all become that making a break – even for a few days would be tough.
But learning to separate ourselves from work and our social media tribe is essential if we want to maintain a semblance of independence.
Work is important. Facebook, less so. And learning to turn away from both for even a little bit can help us recalibrate.
If you need a business reason to try this, think about what effect resetting your perspective and looking at your business from a completely fresh angle on Monday morning could mean to your clients? A little bit of distance can do amazing things for your objectivity.
Try it this weekend. Can you live without email and social media for 48 hours?
On Monday, I’ll be back to writing about marketing with some tips on how to use LinkedIn for prospecting.
Next week, I’ll also have a blog about optimizing your videos for search.
So have a good weekend. I’m off to grab a beer.