We are about to enter a time of year where a lot of people take time off but are you able to really, truly disconnect from work for a period of days or even, gasp, weeks?
When we talk about stress, overwhelm and mental wellbeing, this is one of the things I see you struggling with the most.
I hear things like"
"I might miss something important"
"I might miss an opportunity for business, or a sale"
"I feel calmer when I know that things are being handled"
We talk a lot about boundaries in the Burnout To Boundaries™ program and a well-written out of office email response can be the perfect way to set a boundary AND ensure that the other person has a) options and b) clearly defined next steps in your absence.
Here's an example of my own email responder for the 2024 holiday season:
There's a few parts of this email that I see many people missing in their out of office message.
Most typical out of office messages go something like this:
"I'm currently out of office. In my absence please contact Jane at (xxx) xxx-yyyy".
It's missing so many opportunities to connect, engage and support the person emailing you, even when you aren't there to respond.
Here's another example of an out of office message I have used during a busy time of year when I would be delayed in responding to emails and customer requests.
Here are 3 tips to write the perfect out of office message
Provide Details - clear is kind. Share your out of office start date and end date.
Set expectations up front- Let the sender know when they can expect a response. This is so important because it takes the pressure off to feel like you need to respond to all messages immediately. Even if you do check your mail during your out of office timeframe, clear expectations have been set that they won't be hearing back from you right now.
Add value in your message! - This is my personal favourite and I hardly ever see it used in out of office email responses.
There are so many ways you can deliver value even when out of office, including:
Share your meeting calendar booking link (if you don't have one, make one - I use the free version of Calendly),
Share details on upcoming events, answers to frequently asked questions, blog posts that might be of interest, email list sign up and so much more!
If you are a manager or leader, share links to book a 1-1 time with you, Employee Assistance Program resources, or other internal company resources.
Like this content and want more boundary setting tools for yourself?
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Hi, I'm Alison and welcome to the blog.
I have been a speaker and trainer for 20 years. I offer Mental Health First Aid in Canada and work with workplaces to improve mental wellbeing and psychological safety and reduce stress and burnout.
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Be sure to connect with me on IG @alisonbutlernl or on LinkedIn.
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