My old coworkers still have that group chat running, the one from before I opened the shop, and I never actually left it, so it just keeps going, even late at night when I’m closing up and trying to feed the cats and not think about work at all.
It’s been bothering me more than usual lately. The shop’s been slow so I’ve got too much time to sit there watching my phone buzz, and my skin’s been flaring up with the weather turning too, which never helps. Either way I keep feeling like I owe everyone a quick reply even when it’s nothing that matters. This might just be me, but I don’t think I want to be that reachable anymore.
I was thinking about muting it for a while, maybe through the rest of this season, and only checking it in the evenings instead of every time it buzzes. Not leaving the chat, just quieter. Part of me worries it’ll look cold, or that I’ll miss something that actually mattered and find out too late…
Has anyone actually done this with an old work chat. Did things go back to normal once you stopped answering right away, or did it turn into a whole thing. Really curious how you guys handled it?