Set Boundaries

How am I gonna protect myself from burnout next year?
Here’s a simple tool I use at the beginning of every project:
“I just define my personal space by setting boundaries.”
For example, these are the four boundaries I absolutely won’t compromise in my life:

1.   Working at all hours
I work a lot, but at the same time, when I rest, I truly rest.
Normally, I work 12 hours per day, but during the other 12, there are no calls, no emails, no urgency—nothing!
For me, “urgency” is what’s happening to poor children in Africa who have no water and food. That’s urgency!

2.   Too many “yes”

Every time a new activity comes into my life, I ask myself these 4 questions:
1.   Can I eliminate it?
2.   If not, can I automate it?
3.   If not, can I delegate it?
4.   If not, how can I optimize it?
That lets me focus on only the most important activities.

3.   Too many notifications
I don’t use a lot of social media, but for example, I have no notifications on LinkedIn.

The same thing goes for email and smartphones:
→   I don’t receive notifications for emails, which means I have to check my mailbox to see if I received any.
→   I have no notifications for WhatsApp and smartphone calls, which means I don’t receive notifications for messages or calls.

To check if I’ve received anything, I need to enter WhatsApp.
Additionally, my iPhone is in Airplane Mode for about 23 hours and 45 minutes per day.

4.   Lack of self-care
Here, I’m not talking about massages or wellness spas.

For me, it’s unimaginable to work and live without these four things:
→   Daily workout
→   Healthy nutrition (7 small meals)
→   Minimum 7 hours of sleep (I get 8 hours of sleep a day for 350 days a year)
→   My 1-hour morning routine (with 20 minutes of meditation).