When it comes to this constant grind of work and the expectations placed on us in the modern workplace, we have to stop and ask ourselves: why, and what is this for? What problems are we solving? And who is benefiting? Simply mindlessly grinding out work for the sake of working is pointless if you’re not learning and growing with each iteration and contributing something meaningful that amounts to more than clearing out an email inbox and pushing files around in the name of whatever abomination of the ideal hard work your organization has misconstrued and constructed.
Even if you are the most loyal and dedicated employee who is willing to go to any lengths for your employer… Well, first of all, I’d take a good, long, and hard look at why you’re doing so. Second of all, you have to ask yourself this: Would you be more effective in your role if you took some time off? Or is emptying that email inbox on your weekend and replying to those Teams messages at 11 PM simply keeping you from getting your work done during the day?
But not only does that communication eat into time to rest during the week, when it comes to taking longer breaks, but there is also some expectation that you will still remain connected, with demands being placed that you take your work laptop or phone with you to whatever destination you are headed, should some crisis befall the organization. And the minute that laptop goes into your carry-on, it’s not just occupying space and weighing you down physically; it’s occupying that same mental space and adding that same mental weight too. Every time you heft your backpack onto your shoulder, you’re reminded that the work is still there waiting, and cracking open the clamshell case and booting it up could reveal some string of urgent messages.
And “take your phone/laptop” with you quickly turns to questions of “Where are you going,” becoming increasingly invasive and personal as the questions lead on.
In some areas, there are rules against even asking or demanding employees to divulge why they are taking leave. I think there is nothing stopping them from asking, but it is sometimes legally and culturally frowned upon.
Besides, it’s not like you’re some dog whose whereabouts need to be tracked at all times. You’re a human being who, thanks to the society that we’ve created, just so happens to trade a (solid) chunk of your time every week to be able to afford food and a warm room with a roof over your head.
It’s not totally abnormal to have normal, human-to-human conversations about these things and ask some questions about what they’re doing and why they need to take the leave, but that should and only should come down to points of actual personal investment and mutual interest, which are things that are fast disappearing in the workplace. You can’t simply show no personal investment in your staff and then suddenly be interested in their personal lives when they submit their PTO request, which has been earned and obligated.
Of course, not every leave request at every point of the year is the same; if there are deadlines or high seasonal volumes of work, it can be harder for a manager to justify swinging the time off.
Author: Kayitsi.com
