Setting Boundaries at Work

Setting boundaries at work can be challenging, but it is necessary to safeguard your mental, physical, and emotional well-being.

There are three types of work-related boundaries.

Work boundaries define the limits of what is required in your role, ensuring clarity about your duties and responsibilities. These include minimizing interruptions by communicating your availability, saying no to requests when you lack capacity, managing how you attend meetings, and responding to email outside of work hours. Work boundaries can also include avoiding unproductive conversations such as gossip and refraining from multitasking.

Working Relationships boundaries define the limits of what you are willing to accept in terms of respectful and safe interactions with others. Examples of physical working relationship boundaries include your preferences for personal space, the degree of physical contact with others, and how others handle your personal belongings, such as items on your desk. Emotional boundaries include being clear about what topics you are comfortable talking about and which you are not, communicating how you desire to receive feedback, and limiting engagement with people who are expressing negativity.

Finally, Self-Care boundaries define the boundaries of what you require to stay mentally, emotionally, and physically healthy. This includes taking time for rest, eating at regular intervals, staying hydrated, managing your medication, getting in some movement, taking mental breaks, and giving yourself permission to change your mind or admit you made a mistake.

How to Set Boundaries

This post focuses on work-related boundaries, but you can also use these steps for establishing boundaries in your personal life.

• STEP 1: Shift your mindset from viewing setting boundaries as being selfish to viewing boundaries as a necessity. In fact, establishing personal boundaries is critical to create safety, protect your well-being, promote healthy relationships, and enhance your self-esteem.

  
  

• STEP 2: Define your values and priorities. Consider what is important to you, such as your time and peace of mind. And who is important to you, such as your family, friends, and teammates. Make a list of these values and priorities. You may even want to keep your list at your desk and refer to it when needed as a reminder of your what and who.

  
  

• STEP 3: Determine your limits by labelling your boundaries as hard or soft. Hard boundaries are the ones you refuse to compromise on. These are your non-negotiables. For example, you are off the clock by 4:00 every Thursday to take your daughter to ballet practice. A soft boundary, on the other hand, is a “nice to have”. It’s more flexible. For example, you are willing to answer emails outside of normal work hours if they are urgent. As you determine your boundaries, think through how you will respond in the event they are violated.

  
  

• STEP 4: Communicate your boundaries and why you need them with your manager and colleagues. Don’t assume people know what your boundaries are or that their boundaries are the same as yours. It is also important to define your terms. For instance, if you don't want to be contacted on vacation unless it's urgent, be explicit about what constitutes an emergency.

When your boundaries are violated, address the situation immediately and respectfully with a powerful conversation.

Explain to the person involved what the issue is and discuss how you'd like to proceed. While it might feel uncomfortable initially, it’s better to reinforce your boundaries in the moment rather than wait. And if you never address when your boundary is violated with the other person, it’s not really a boundary. It’s more of a suggestion.

Phrases to Help You Set Boundaries

Here are several phrases you can use to set boundaries at work:

• I need to set some boundaries around my work hours to maintain a healthy work-life balance.

• I won’t be able to work on that project until I receive clear instructions and a timeline.

• I’m not comfortable working on weekends, but I’m happy to prioritize this task on Monday.

• I prefer to communicate through Teams or text instead of email to streamline our communication.

• I appreciate the opportunity to learn, but I need some support and guidance to be able to complete this task effectively.

• I need some time to disconnect from work and recharge, so I’ll be offline for the weekend and will not respond to email or Teams messages.

• I won’t be able to attend that meeting, but I can provide an update via email later today.

• I need to take a break to refocus and come back with fresh ideas.

• I’m not comfortable discussing personal matters at work, but I’m happy to listen and support as a colleague.

• I’m willing to help, but I need some clarification on the expectations and the timeline before I commit to this task.

Which boundaries do you need to set at work?

Sources:

• Castrillon, C. (2024, February 12). How to set boundaries at work without jeopardizing your career. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/carolinecastrillon/2024/02/11/how-to-set-boundaries-at-work-without-jeopardizing-your-career/

• Paruolo, B. (2025, February 27). 10 boundary setting phrases to use in the workplace. Mental Health Match. https://mentalhealthmatch.com/articles/skills/10-boundary-setting-phrases-to-use-in-the-workplace

• Setting healthy boundaries at work - Workplace Strategies for Mental Health. (n.d.). WSMH. https://www.workplacestrategiesformentalhealth.com/resources/setting-healthy-boundaries-at-work

---

4N Learning Consultants provides comprehensive Learning & Development services. As your trusted instructional design partner, we will work closely with your team to provide original content for your sessions. We facilitate interactive in-person and virtual learning experiences for groups of all sizes, focusing on leadership development, talent management, and power (soft) skills. Use our end-to-end strategy consultation services for guidance on everything from alignment with strategic priorities to training program design, launch, and implementation. Finally, use our training program evaluation services to receive a detailed analysis of its strengths and opportunities and a blueprint with specific recommendations to help close gaps in employee performance. Contact us to schedule a free consultation today.