Every so often, leaving work on time is one of the most difficult to-do’s on the list. The Miami Herald’s Cindy Krischer Goodman shares her advice on what to do to leave work on time:
Ramp up communication. “I often have scrambled out the door way past the time I was supposed to stop working. One year, I resolved to leave by 6 p.m., which required starting my day promptly. I talked to my manager about my plan. By doing so, rather than just trying to bolt when no one was looking, I got his buy in. He understood my goals and changed his habits of making late afternoon requests. Managers, customers and co-workers become less likely to drop to-dos on your lap toward the end of the day when you establish a pattern of leaving on time and communicate your schedule.”
Give yourself a 20-minute window for departure. “If you wait until 6 p.m. to start packing up, you likely will get delayed by distractions. Once you’ve set your departure time, block out the 20 minutes prior to that time on your calendar to clean up any last daily details.”
Read Goodman’s full article here.