here’s the thing about boundaries. they are so hard for me to have, and yet when i do have them i recognize how much better off everyone around me will be.
the last few days have been absolutely brutal with work. starting my day responding to emails the moment i wake up, working until 10pm, eating at my desk, meeting after meeting, charging my phone multiple times a day from the sheer amount of battery power used in talking on it, you get the drift. last night, things started slowing down around 7p so i decided to make dinner and treat myself to binging a few episodes of yellowjackets. mid-way through the first episode at around 8p, i got a text from a producer asking if i wanted to catch up on a job. she had called me the day before when i was on another call, i called her back when i was off and texted her that i was available. she never called me the rest of that day, or anytime during work hours the following day. and now, when i was having non-work time and enjoying my evening, she wanted to talk. i texted her back and asked if it was urgent or if we could catch up tomorrow AM to which she replied we could. and texted a couple more times but i had already set my phone to the side and continued enjoying my evening.
this morning, when i called her back, i was calm and collected. i had rested the night before and was able to chat with her without being annoyed (even though it was super annoying stuff she was calling me about). and i realized – this is why you have boundaries. if you don’t have the mental capacity to deal with something, don’t. take a pause. come back later when you’re ready to deal with it. and it makes you feel good to take care of yourself.
so, boundaries man. they work. they make you feel good. and sometimes people don’t trust your yesses, until you learn how to say no.
