Dr. Laura Blog

I want you to stop and think about the amount of time that you spend checking work email outside of work. Most of you are addicted to it. It reminds me of an episode that I saw of Star Trek: The Next Generation ironically called “The Game”, where the crew found a shiny object and became addicted to it. The object was so attractive and compelling that they preferred it over real life. This is what I believe checking work email outside of work has become.    

Many of you spend up to 10 hours a day checking after-hours work email, easily increasing your work week to over 70 hours or more. And for what? You’re not getting paid for it and in some cases, your employers may be violating labor laws. In fact, you’re probably less productive because you’re slowly but surely burning yourself out. 

Checking work email outside of work affects everything from leisure time to family time. These are hours you aren’t spending on dates with your spouse, going out with family or friends, or having a personal life. You are missing out on life!

Furthermore, it takes a large toll on your health. If you are receiving and answering email at all hours of the day, you may be experiencing a lack of sleep and a cascading list of other health-related problems, including heart disease, sore muscles, and back pain.

Email and text messages are also problematic because you can’t see body language or hear tone of voice. The written word sounds very different than the spoken word and can lead to misunderstandings.

Do yourself a favor - disengage from your work email and instead, engage with friends, family and yourself, otherwise you will miss out on life.