I’ve always found the idea of an “out of office” email pretty absurd, particularly since around fifteen years ago when it seemed by then everyone had, first, a blackberry, then later, a smartphone. In other words, we are all able to check our emails on our phones anytime, so the idea of being “out of office” and so uncontactable is, well, daft. So, why do we still set an “out of office” email message at all?
Is it because our colleagues and clients have unreasonable expectations of us? That we are expected to be available 24/7 365 by the culture of the business we work for? Or perhaps it is to show we are actually taking a break? Who knows, all I can tell you is that I don’t ever set an out of office email. Here’s my background to that.
Many years ago, in the Blackberry era, I was already part of the “hamster wheel” mob, always running endlessly to do stuff, to answer emails, to be busy.
So, when the novelty of having email on a mobile device happened, I didn’t set an out of office, as I still constantly checked my emails when on vacation. Hey, why set an out of office email when you actually can check your messages. Oh, and my reality check was that I always carried my laptop when on vacation, so I was always available to clients and colleagues.
However, I did change. It was one of my (back then) young sons who jolted me, hard. We were walking around a theme park on vacation one day and there I was, on the Blackberry dealing with yet another urgent matter. He stopped me, tugged my arm somewhat irritatedly, then asked if I could put my phone down for the rest of the day as “Daddy, you are here but you are not really here!”. Ugh, what a wake-up call.
So, back then I didn’t set an out of office email as I was always checking email. Now, I still don’t set an out of office email, but the reasoning is different.
Simply put, as I wrote about a while ago: I don’t do deadline-based work
I recognise that this may put me in a privileged minority, but it has happened through consciously shifting a number of things over time.
My work is with a select (ie small) number of clients and we work our meetings and calls around all of our vacations, theirs and mine.
They also know they can reach me at any time by phone, message, email. You know what, though? When they know they can, sometimes that is all they need. If they need me, I know it is urgent and we can normally address the urgent need in a few minutes. However, this rarely happens, it can normally wait until I am back at work.
All of this means nobody needs to receive an out of office email from me, so I don’t set one.
So, all that said, I’m scheduling this and some other posts while I am, indeed, out of office for the rest of this week and the weekend.
I may check my emails, but I won’t reply if anyone sends one.
Oh, and I won’t set an out of office message.
Do you set an out of office message when you are on vacation or holiday? If so, what is the reason? No, really, what is the reason? 😉
Oh, and if a) you tell me that your colleagues or clients expect you to reply 24/7 and b) you hate that… then there are other questions you may choose to ask yourself!