The old adage; “There never seems to be enough hours in the day” sometimes feels like the curse that can’t be exorcised from IT or Tech Support. With good time management skills, you can increase efficiency and reduce the stress caused by being overloaded. But, no matter how good you are at planning, scheduling and delegating, there are too many times when you feel pulled in too many directions.
The good side of being wanted and valuable may be job security, but the down side is you may find yourself unable to catch a breath and ultimately stressed-out.
I don’t know about you, but I find if I don’t allow myself to take a pause now and then, my patience erodes Big Time.
I insist that I can take a one hour break mid-day and I take that lunch break outside of the building. I even turn off my phone. That way, no one can interrupt for a perceived emergency. There are others available who can handle things in the interim. This is my way to re-energize, collect thoughts and maintain sanity. …or maybe I’m just being selfish.
My previous employer would only allow 30 minutes for lunch and made no allowances for any other breaks during the day. As far as they were concerned, when you were on-site, you were on the clock and therefore expected to be producing. …this even though I was a salaried employee. I have to say, that was one of the major reasons I left that company.
What do you think? Do you take a break during the day? How do you spend it? Is it important? Vital?
