A columnist received angry emails after a political piece while on a family bike ride, and opening the inbox turned a peaceful outing into stress. The intrusion revealed the need for clearer boundaries between work and personal life. A remark about treating energy like an expensive luxury reinforced the idea of conserving emotional bandwidth. The columnist reframed personal energy as a resource and decided to set limits on connectivity. The columnist acknowledged that some colleagues thrive on constant availability, accepted different approaches, and chose boundaries after recognizing a moment of self-sabotage in the park.
On the Sunday the column ran, I was escaping lockdown on a bike ride with my family. During a water break, I reached for my phone in what felt like a disembodied act. I opened my work email to a contingent of nastiness, readers telling me to stay in my place and not start with politics. "What's wrong?" my husband said. Good question. What was wrong? It was not what I had written, which I stood by, and which was my job. It's not that people reacted to it - they had every right.
I was reminded of the crucial nature of boundaries recently when Taylor Swift dropped wisdom on the "New Heights" podcast. The quip has been working hard among overworked, overexposed people of all stripes, especially journalists, whose days are ruled by around-the-clock connectivity and input from the public. "You should think of your energy as if it's expensive, as if it's like a luxury item," said Swift. "Not everyone can afford it." She's right, you know. My go-to phrase has been, "Your energy is a resource." My version is more fossil fuel than Louis Vuitton, but it's the same idea, a conviction that only formed because of that self-sabotage in the park.
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