Patricia Salem
Jul 25, 2017 · 2 min read

I don’t have Slack, and I don’t even work in an office environment (I’m a freelancer, working from home). But it doesn’t matter. Between WhatsApp and Google Hangouts and Skype and everything else, it seems like I can’t escape the constant barrage of communication. Last week I spent more time communicating about projects than I did actually working on them.

At least in an office you’re presumably in the same time zone. I’ve become reluctant about sharing instant communication contact info with clients because I don’t want someone in Australia or the UK pinging me in the middle of the night.

I can make myself invisible on Google and unavailable on Skype, but to my knowledge, there’s no way of hiding on WhatsApp. So now I feel like I’m being passive aggressive simply by waiting to answer messages there because I’m busy doing work or heaven forbid, having a life. When I don’t answer messages, sometimes people start in with emails that resemble chat: “Hey, are you there?” The “last seen online” feature has got to go — it’s like something from the early days of dating sites.

I love the Internet for the flexibility it affords me to work remotely, but I’ve always hated instant messaging, and I do even more nowadays. Pair instant communication with the mistaken client notion that they are my only client, and it’s a road to rapid burnout. I freelance for a reason, and being constantly available to people ain’t it.

I think I have to start preemptively informing clients that I prefer to use email for everything but complete-emergency-the-barn-is-on-fire stuff and that I respond to emails during XXX hours of the day. I feel for office workers who don’t have that option. Twenty-four/seven availability is killing the North American workforce and it’s migrating to Europe, which used to have a better work-life balance.

    Patricia Salem

    Written by

    Writer specializing in the equine industry. Blogs about expat life in Baja, Mexico.