This week I’ve had a few coaching conversations about work life boundaries.

The most successful people I work with are not the ones working the longest hours. They’re the ones with clear boundaries. They do excellent work. And they leave space for recovery, relationships and a rich, full life.

Poor boundaries look little different for everyone to be honest. But they’re often signalled by some resentment or a lack of self-care. I think they look like regularly checking work emails when you're on holiday. Or responding to an email at 9.30pm. They look like getting a head start on your work week on a Sunday afternoon. Or working when you're on sick leave.

I can absolutely get some pushback from clients on this one.

Some people believe their job simply cannot be done in normal hours.

Some wear “hard worker” as an identity.

Some are quietly driven by imposter syndrome.

And yes, some leaders role model terrible boundaries.

But here’s the truth. Your organisation will not set your boundaries and your leader may not either. You have to draw the (boundary) line - they may not like it but that's okay because it's not your job to make everyone happy.

Your job is to demonstrate that you can do your role well and maintain your boundaries. If your organisation (or leader) has no respect for that, there is most certainly a problem.

A quote that resonates for me is "the people most upset when you enforce your boundaries are the ones who benefitted from you having none".

What’s your experience?