I’ve been thinking a lot about boundaries lately. First inspired by this podcast (and the guest’s book), I’ve been questioning my own boundaries a lot – and realizing just how few strict boundaries I implement. But I’m working on it, starting with tech boundaries. If you’re looking to do the same, here are some to consider.

EMAILS

• With the Boomerang plug-in, you can literally ‘pause your inbox,’ which essentially hides your emails from you from x hour to x hour of your choice. You can override this if it’s an emergency but unless you choose to turn off the function, you won’t see any incoming emails until the clock hits 8 a.m. or whatever time you have it set to.
• Close your email window on your desktop, other than checking in a few times a day. I like morning, before lunch, and once about an hour before I sign off.
• Star any unwanted emails and at the end of each day, unsubscribe. You can also use something like Unroll me.

TEXTS, CALLS and NOTIFICATIONS

• Turn off notifications for group texts if you’re in active group chats. Catch up when you feel like it or remove yourself from the group text entirely.
• Make a work rule that you don’t text coworkers, clients, and the like. It might feel uncomfortable at first, but most people will respect this and it’s worth a shot.
• Remove iMessage from your computer if it’s a distraction.
• Similar to email, choose a few times a day (or whatever works for you) to check/respond to texts. Turn off your notifications, silence your phone, use Airplane mode, whatever.
• For spam calls, follow these instructions from the FTC to avoid them as much as possible. SO annoying, right?
• Spend 10 minutes to go through all the apps on your phone and turn off any push notifications you don’t actually find useful.

SOCIAL MEDIA

• Unfollow anyone who makes you feel negative or down on yourself. This goes for any hate follows as well – you know those people you secretly follow just to judge/talk shit about. It’s not serving you!
• If you’re worried about hurting feelings, use the mute button on Instagram and use it often.
• If a certain app is overall giving you anxiety or making you feel shitty, delete it! Life can go on without Instagram; try it for a few days to see what it’s like.
• Turn on time limits on your social media apps (or any apps for that matter). On an iPhone, go to Settings > Screen Time and then turn on screen time. You can tap App Limits and edit accordingly for specific apps from there.

What other tech boundaries have you implemented? Spill please!