The following is a guest post by Elise Woodard (Michigan), Carolina Flores (Rutgers), Milana Kostic (UCSD), Angela Sun (Michigan), and Jingyi Wu (UC Irvine), graduate students who comprise the organizing team of Minorities and Philosophy (MAP).
‘Boundaries’ has become a buzzword in academia. We often hear about the importance of setting boundaries and cultivating work-life balance, yet many of us still struggle to set boundaries effectively and confidently. Moreover, the language of boundaries is often not subject to explicit scrutiny, yet like other buzzwords such as ‘self-care,’ it is liable to be co-opted or misunderstood.
At our Central APA session, Minorities and Philosophy (MAP) attempted to open up the conversation about how to set boundaries and how to talk about them. Here we share some tips on how to set, communicate, and think about boundaries in a salutary and non-individualistic way.
What are Boundaries & Why are they Important?
Our focus was on work-related boundaries. We understand boundaries broadly to include any rules we set---implicitly or explicitly---for how we allocate our time and energy between different spheres of our lives. This includes how we balance work and life as well as research, service, and teaching commitments.
These rules have implications for our relationships to colleagues and mentors, to technology, and to ourselves. For instance, if we are unable to decline requests for service, then this can interfere both with our ability to reserve enough time for research and can impede healthy relationships with others who make these requests. Similarly, the ‘always on’ culture can affect our relationship with technology---we may spend inordinate amounts of time on email---which has clear effects on what else we have time to focus on. Finally, if one allows other commitments to encroach on research, it can affect one’s ability to identify as a scholar, which for many of us is a vital part of our identities. Most importantly, setting poor boundaries, or failing to enforce one’s boundaries, is detrimental to one’s mental health.
Despite the apparent importance of setting rules on how we allocate our time and energy, one might worry about the use of the term boundary-setting to describe these healthy and necessary practices. The term ‘boundary-setting’ can inadvertently communicate an endorsement of practices that are rigid or inflexible. This has at least two potential negative consequences. First, it can make the practice of boundary-setting seem undesirable or selfish, including to those who may need it most. Second, it can lead to co-option. Like other buzzwords such as ‘self-care,’ the notion of ‘boundary-setting’ can be used to justify practices that are individualistic and that exacerbate problems they were intended to address. For instance, if others are too good at protecting their time, then one might feel extra pressure to do more than one’s fair share of organizing or attending departmental events.
In light of these concerns, we suggest that most boundaries be understood in terms of a negotiation, rather than rigid inflexibility (though, of course, we will all have some hard limits on what we’re willing to do). In addition, they ought to be understood, where possible, as a collective good that we ought to be mindful of and help others enforce.
Why are Boundaries Hard to Set?
Despite what the competitive, ‘always on’ culture of academic philosophy tells us, healthy work-life boundaries are often essential to consistent productivity and avoiding burnout. For this reason, it is important to figure out why one struggles to set boundaries.
There are a variety of reasons why boundary-setting is difficult. For instance, one may struggle to set boundaries for personal reasons---e.g. setting boundaries can feel uncomfortable or guilt-inducing. We may also worry about the reactions others have to us setting boundaries; for instance, we might worry we will not be seen as a ‘team player.’ And, as noted, the culture of academic philosophy can make it difficult to set boundaries. Finally, as we suggested earlier, boundary-setting may seem unattractive if not properly understood.
Tips for Setting Boundaries in Organizing Contexts
Graduate students and faculty alike will find themselves organizing with others, whether by organizing a MAP chapter or a conference or participating in committees. Organizing in group contexts can introduce unique challenges. However, it also offers a unique opportunity to enact and promote salutary norms regarding setting and respecting boundaries.
First, we ought to explicitly bring boundaries into the conversation in co-organizing work. For instance, rather than consistently relying on others to set and enforce their own boundaries, we ought to try to help them set their own. For instance, we ought to discuss time commitment expectations from the get-go, clearly give everyone an option to decline requests, suggest different timelines, and redistribute work as necessary.
Second, where possible, we ought to encourage each other to be explicit about our bandwidth, and set goals and expectations in light of organizer constraints rather than vice versa.
Third, at the end of organizing meetings where tasks are volunteered for or delegated, we encourage a norm of checking in on how the action items were distributed. It sometimes happens---often unintentionally---that the work is unfairly distributed. (Of course, there are some cases where a distribution that looks unfair on paper makes sense in the context.) Others should also gently check in on fellow organizers who seem to have taken on too much.
Tips for Boundary Setting for Individuals
In light of the difficulty of setting boundaries, and the variety of reasons for this, we have compiled a list of concrete tips. These are merely suggestions; some may work better than others. We encourage others to think of and suggest their own!
Work Life Boundaries
- Cultivate a writing practice, e.g. via non-negotiable blocks of times every day
- Pretend you’re working a 9--5 and treat yourself like an employee
Reflecting On & Practicing Boundaries
- Once a month (or more), step back & ask: is this way of structuring my time working for me? If not, why not? What are my goals? Values?
- Practice setting boundaries (e.g. practicing ‘baby no’s,’ i.e. saying ‘no’ in easier circumstances; having ‘go to’ boundary-setting phrases such as “I would love to help, but I have a bit too much on my plate right now,” and “I have to sleep on it; I have a policy of not making decisions right away”; setting clear rules)
- Practice noticing feelings in a non-judgmental way (e.g. by taking some time to meditate or journal)
Habits & Practices for Mental Health Generally
- Exercise and Sleep
- Take up a hobby!
- Consider going to therapy
Technology
- Have email hours and make them clear
- Try adding an email signature
- Try apps like ‘Focus,’ ‘Self-Control,’ and ‘Forest’ to protect your time while working
Other Tips
- Decide in advance a threshold for how many events (etc.) you’ll go to, and be happy if you meet that threshold
- Trade in some responsibilities for others -- e.g. if you mentor a lot of people informally, give yourself permission to step back from other things
We invite readers to submit further tips and to check out our additional resources here under “MAP Resources” → “2020 Central APA Group Sessions.” There you will find a more detailed Tip List, a series of cases for group discussion and reflection, and a boundary-setting worksheet.
We would like to thank participants in the MAP Group Session at the 2020 Central APA for their thoughtful comments. Thanks especially to our speaker, Sarah Gorman, and to Mary Kate McGowan, Lisa Miracchi, Elise Woodard, and Robin Zheng for sharing their experiences and insights as panelists.
Comments