Why checking email at night is bad

It's Sunday night. Are you about to send a work email? Don't. (At least if your company's normal workweek is Monday-Friday! If you work for a company with a work from anywhere anytime policy, that's amazing! This may not apply to you. But in a traditional business with set hours like I've worked in most of my career? Read on.) Before leaving the corporate world earlier this year to launch my own business, I worked in the world of HR for nearly 30 years, leading HR for 25. So I get it. If you are a leader, you can't always shut your laptop at the end of the day Friday and forget about work. But you can try. And if it's not possible, you can help make sure your team has a much needed weekend or evening break. How? If your work hours are all over the place, schedule that email to be sent during normal business hours. It's easy to do in most platforms. (NOTE: This is easiest if your team is in one time zone on roughly the same schedule - it's trickier, but not impossible, to work with each team member's time zone.) You may tell your team it's ok not to respond to emails, or even have a bounceback email that says something like that. But what matters more than intent is impact. The impact of a team leader sending copious amounts of emails during non-work hours can have the unintended consequence of making your team feel like they have to work 24/7. That they have to check their email constantly even when off for a day or a week. And while that may be in some cases, and certainly urgent issues come up from time to time, most of the time it's habit. That feeling of always having to be on is not sustainable to most people - and can and will lead to burnout. We talked about this a lot with the executive team at my last company because my team members felt this deeply from all across the company. As executives we couldn't necessarily always shut off at the end of a day or week. But we could make sure our people did. If we had to be plugged in or wanted to be catching up on email on the weekends, we scheduled our emails to be sent during the workweek. If something came up that was urgent and we needed a team member? We called. It wasn't perfect. But it was something. And it gave my team - who felt comfortable bringing up these concerns - a break. Which gave everyone else who might not have been comfortable saying something a break as well. Most of the time that email can wait. And that gives you a break too.

Here’s how my last boss drove me away. She kept sending me emails after business hours. Worse yet, she sent them over the weekend as well. I worked 50 hours a week in the office, but to her, it wasn’t enough. She was a workaholic and worked well into the night when she got home. Every time I checked my email or received notifications from her, it made me cringe. She made me cringe. I was anxious at night, and Sundays were the worst. I eventually left. Here’s the thing: even qualifying those emails with “update for tomorrow” or “I don’t expect you to look at this tonight,” the damage is done. It’s a compulsion to check work emails (along with IG, Snap, X, or whatever else). Employees may not act on that email, but they’ll see and think about it. It’s there, renting space in their mind, like an unchecked box, and often it feels like the sword of Damocles hanging over their head, all night or all weekend long. What’s the way out? Set a delivery delay for the following business morning. Let your employees watch Yellowstone and play with their dogs without thinking about work.

Unwritten Rule: Stop emailing after hours. 70% of managers send emails outside of working hours. There are unintended impacts from this action: - Late-night emails not only stretches your day, it stretches your team's day. - It also increases anxiety and reduces the amount of quality sleep one gets (sender or receiver). Look, I get it: Leaders and managers are often wired to keep the ball rolling – any time, all the time. ◾ There's a simple rule of thumb that helps: - Make sure the critical items are taken care of, - While not encroaching on your team's family time. 1. 𝐄m𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐬 - happen 20% of the time. - This will require communication outside of normal hours. - Urgent matters need handling and you're there to lead the charge. 2. 𝐒𝐚𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐓𝐢𝐦𝐞 - is 80% of the time. - It's the pause that allows rest and rejuvenation for your team. Respect of personal boundaries creates a healthy work environment. - It motivates employees. - It promotes loyalty. High-performing teams are made from a balance that encourages rest as much as effort. This means when they are working, they're giving you the very best of their energy and creativity. So before hitting 'send' post-hours, ask yourself: Can it wait till morning? (or use the delay function on your email!) Because respecting the sanctity of personal time doesn't only improve well-being, it sets the stage for more vibrant and sustained performance. ** If this struck a chord, pass it on ♻. Follow me, Lindsey Bell, to receive more "Unsolicited Career Advice" every Tuesday morning!

One late-night email is never just one. It resets what your team thinks is expected Most leaders don’t mean to model overworking. But here’s what happens: One email gets sent at 9 PM. A quick Saturday message goes out. A few calls slip in during a vacation. And your team sees it.  Even if you don’t say a word. They think:  → “𝘐𝘧 𝘮𝘺 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘳’𝘴 𝘢𝘭𝘸𝘢𝘺𝘴 𝘰𝘯, 𝘐 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘣𝘦 𝘵𝘰𝘰.”  → “𝘉𝘦𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘮𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦.” That’s how burnout builds, not from workload alone,  but from never feeling permission to truly switch off. Leaders who make rest visible create teams that thrive. When leaders unplug, teams learn: ✅ It’s safe to take breaks. ✅ New ideas often show up after space to think. ✅ Focus is sharper when energy is protected. ✅ Performance is sustainable, not a sprint to exhaustion. Here’s how to model it this weekend (and beyond): 1️⃣ 𝗪𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝗶𝘁 𝗻𝗼𝘄, 𝘀𝗲𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝘁 𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗿. Draft the email tonight. Schedule it for Monday morning. ✅ It’s a small shift that tells your team: “𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘪𝘴𝘯’𝘵 𝘶𝘳𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘵. 𝘙𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵.” 2️⃣ 𝗘𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗲𝗲𝗸 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗮 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗲𝘁. Say it out loud: “𝘓𝘰𝘨 𝘰𝘧𝘧. 𝘕𝘰 𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘬𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘦𝘮𝘢𝘪𝘭𝘴. 𝘊𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘨𝘦𝘥.” ✅ Clear words cut the guilt your team won’t name. 3️⃣ 𝗛𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗲𝗹. Name a point person while you’re offline. ✅ It builds trust, grows their confidence, and stops you from checking in “just in case.” 4️⃣ 𝗠𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗯𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝘃𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗯𝗹𝗲. Block your own time off. Leave early for once and tell them why. ✅ When leaders do it first, teams believe it’s safe. Every small signal teaches your team what’s safe to do. If you want a team that’s rested, creative, and resilient,  start by showing them it’s possible. When was the last time you fully disconnected? —————————— ♻️ Repost to help normalize guilt-free rest. 🔔 Follow Justin Hills for human-first leadership strategies. 🎯 Join the Free email course for ambitious leaders 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗚𝗼𝗮𝗹 𝗦𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺 - https://lnkd.in/gvfcqi_i

We’ve all seen it. That late-night email. A Slack message at an ungodly hour. The “just circling back” ping… at 3 AM. Some wear it as a badge of honour - proof of their relentless work ethic. But here’s the thing: Constant availability isn’t a leadership trait. It’s a boundary problem. When leaders send emails at odd hours, even with a “no rush” disclaimer, it subtly creates pressure. It sets the tone for a culture where work bleeds into life, where rest is optional, and burnout is inevitable. Respect isn’t just about words - it’s about actions. • Schedule emails for working hours. • Normalise real downtime. • Show that balance is valued, not just preached. Because great teams don’t thrive on exhaustion. They thrive on clarity, boundaries, and respect.