Many of us struggle with staying off our smart phones. After all, we can expect to be on our phones both during and outside of work hours nowadays. But even though life demands that we are chronically online, being in digital spaces for too long can take a toll on our mental and physical wellbeing.
It’s easy to not realise just how unhealthy it can be to never log off. You can become riddled with anxiety just thinking about emails, and your body is always on guard anticipating the next notification. At this point, your mind is practically begging for rest – so why not put yourself first and leave your screens for the day?
Getting into the habit of actively prioritising your digital wellness might be mentally challenging at first, but you’ll find that keeping well-rested will actually help you enjoy a better quality of life overall, supporting you in being more patient, more productive, and generally happier and with reduced stress.
If you’d like to master the art of logging off, then get started with these foundational digital wellness tips we’ve shared below.
1. Be intentional with your time
If you’re juggling many responsibilities and thus find it difficult to unwind, then you can definitely benefit from being more intentional with your time, firstly by setting boundaries for when you should and shouldn’t work. It’s important to make sure you allocate time in your day to actually rest, especially if your work schedule is irregular. With the end of the year looming, this may also be an ideal time to set up healthy habits for 2026. For instance, you can use an annual planner for 2026 to section off busy periods and moments of rest throughout your days of the week. This little habit can help you protect your downtime by highlighting it all during the week. Plus, you’ll find that your pen and paper record-keeping will also help your digital wellness initiatives all throughout the year – and beyond.
Treat weekends as “off” days where there’s no pressure to be productive across your professional life. That means no answering emails, no logging on, and no finishing up any spreadsheets. Instead, you can go for a walk with your dog in the morning, drink a cup of coffee while reading a book, or start that hobby you’ve been putting off. You could even have a staycation!
2. Know when to stop working
The last thing we want to do is work overtime and delay our much needed rest, but sometimes it’s hard to resist the urge to finish what we’ve started. We tell ourselves it’ll only take a few minutes and keep going, but minutes can turn into hours in the blink of an eye. This causes a domino effect: we get home later, we can’t shut off unless we crash, and we become even more exhausted while dreading doing it all over again the next day.
There is rarely a situation where running on empty after 5pm like this is necessary too. So get into the discipline of letting yourself say that something can wait until 9am tomorrow, when you can return with a clear head. For now, however, your first priority should turn towards getting home, and thinking about what to do for dinner this evening, or what you want to focus on during your gym session tonight, and anything else that nourishes you after a long day’s work.
Of course, this approach will take a little rewiring as well. For instance, you will need to absorb the fact that stopping work isn’t the same thing as avoiding it. Learning when to stop is a vital component of avoiding burnout, supporting you in maintaining a healthier professional life, and being a more potent productive force in your work environment.
3. Communicate with your colleagues
And speaking of your workplace, one of the biggest obstacles to setting boundaries for work can be communicating your expectations to other people, such as your colleagues, supervisor, or clients. While it’s normal to want to accommodate requests and be as helpful as possible, we can’t let this come at the cost of our time and wellbeing. Instead, get into the habit of communicating your boundaries to your colleagues as well, letting them know that you’ll be unreachable beyond working hours and that you’ll respond to them when you’re back online. And you aren’t being difficult or uncooperative by doing this either. You’re actually communicating your needs upfront and thus, laying the groundwork for stronger professional relationships.
It’s important to set these expectations early on to prevent any bad habits from forming, such as late night meetings, unpaid overtime, or contact outside of work hours or on the weekends. The benefit of setting boundaries like these is that not only do you get reprieve from work, but you’re also squashing any unrealistic expectations, setting you up for success and enhanced productivity by letting you take greater control of your time. And you better believe that good colleagues will respect you for setting such healthy boundaries for yourself! If you’re a supervisor yourself, practicing these wellness habits may also help you lead by example too, as your team members will also be encouraged to maintain this same approach, which will in turn, lead to improved worker satisfaction across your team.
Reclaim Your Time & Reclaim Your Life
In a world that never stops scrolling, pinging, or updating, learning to log off can be one of the most powerful acts of self-care. Productivity thrives when balance is properly maintained. When you prioritise your wellbeing and make time for life outside the screen, you don’t just become a better worker, you become a happier, more fulfilled person!
But it’s important to remember that work/life balance in the digital age isn’t about simply rejecting technology, but rather about using technology more intentionally and refusing to let it consume your every waking moment. By setting clear boundaries, knowing when to stop, and communicating your limits with others, you will allow yourself to rest, recharge, and refocus on what truly matters.
So unplug, take a breath, and give yourself the space to simply be. After all, mastering the art of logging off is actually mastering the art of living well.
The above article is paid content, and any information presented should be independently verified before making any decisions as a result of the content. This article does not constitute advice of any kind, nor does it represent the opinions of the website publisher.