Does your boss expect too much from you? Do you work with unreasonable work colleagues? Do you often find yourself answering work e-mails late at night? Do you sometimes agree to things at work, against your better judgment? Do people often take advantage of your goodwill and expect you to put yourself out for them again…and again?!
If so, it is possible, you are not setting effective boundaries. Boundaries communicate to other people how they can treat us – what’s acceptable and what isn’t. If we don’t define the limits of our relationships, someone else will.
Yet many of us struggle with boundaries, especially at work. Colleagues and bosses often make unreasonable demands or set unrealistic expectations, we often find ourselves at the mercy of difficult clients, and suddenly work starts feeling overwhelming and we lose control. A similar patter can emerge in our personal relationships and we simply feel undervalued and/or taken advantage of.
So how can we all get better at asserting ourselves? How can we set effective boundaries at work and at home without alienating everyone?
Listen to therapist and coach Gavin Sharpe, on October 2nd at 09:00 CET, on Riviera radio 106.5FM.
