Clock out at five, right ?
The modern workday is supposed to fit neatly into 8 hours, but as far as most people can see – its way longer than that.
You get pinged on Slack while you’re having dinner.
You sneak a glance at your emails in bed because tomorrow’s loaded up with meetings and staring at a blank calender is way more scary than just showing up blind to the day.
None of that gets counted on a timesheet but still, its work, whether we want to admit it or not.
Where Do The Hours Actually Go ?
Take a look at what happens at the bookends of the “official” workday. Your (even short ) daily commute. That morning cup of coffee and staring blankly at your computer until you finally come to life.
Then there are those “quick” 15 min check-ins that somehow turn into a full hour of your time just melting away.
Mental Load
And there’s that mental load hanging over you like a cloud – the nagging feeling of all those things you have to get done that just keep you up at night. And it quite literally makes sense when you start to crunch the numbers.
So eight hours slips and slides its way to eleven.
Not because you’re being slow. Its just that the modern workday is always oozing out past its edges and nobody ever sees that extra bit of time going by.
Honestly, the idea that we have to be on call 24/7 all the time is just kinda whacked. An email sent at 9pm isnt urgent, its just that its lit up on the screen after you’ve finally stopped working.
If you want to get your workday back ?
Well here’s the thing… you’ve got to set a clear boundary and stick to it. Just saying you’re going to stop at 5 and then checking your email at 9 all night isnt going to cut it.
The modern workday wont magically shrink back down to size, so you just have to be in charge and protect that boundary from yourself.
