Summer is the ultimate time to rest, relax and recharge your batteries – but sometimes work doesn’t have the same idea! A recent Microsoft study of small-medium sized business (SMB) employees in Europe found that a huge 83% are contactable by work outside of regular office hours – despite almost three quarters (73%) considering a good work-life balance to be the most important aspect of their job.
So what can you do to make the most of these warm months? Here are five quick ways to spend less time in the office, and more enjoying the sun:
Don’t battle into work in hot cars or packed train carriages on those scorching summer days. Save time and stress by using Skype to join important meetings or chat with colleagues.
If you’re sunning yourself on the beach or sight-seeing around a tourist hotspot, you’ll probably appreciate a break from being contacted. Cortana quiet hours is just the solution for these moments, sending phone calls to voicemail and keeping notifications silent – but prioritizing certain contacts in case you can’t afford to miss a call from the boss.
If you think the growing number of unread messages will tempt you to check your inbox, remove the work email icon from your Windows Phone start screen during family time – out of sight is out of mind.
Only 14% of European SMB workers claim they have their best ideas at work. If your summer holiday is where you get your inspiration, just jot your idea down using OneNote so your can remember it when you get back to the office.
Even with a hope of clear blue skies, there’s one cloud that you should be glad to see this summer if you’re finding it hard to escape the office. Synchronize and access your work anywhere through cloud tools like Office 365 and OneDrive, and pick up wherever you are and through any device.
