This episode’s vocabulary
Procedure
noun — a set of actions that is the official or accepted way of doing something.
To designate
verb — to say officially that a place or thing has a particular character or purpose.
Time off
noun — a period of time when you do not work because of illness or holidays, or because your employer has given you permission to do something else.
Downtime
noun — time when you relax and do not do very much.
To bend the rules
idiom — to break the rules in a way that you consider unimportant or not harmful.
To launch into something
phrasal verb — to suddenly begin doing or saying (something) in an energetic way.
Guideline
noun — information intended to advise people on how something should be done or what something should be.
Principle
noun — a basic idea or rule that explains or controls how something happens or works.
Governing
adj. — having a controlling influence on something.
Never-ending
adj. — something that is never-ending never ends or seems as if it will never end.
To burn (yourself) out
phrasal verb — to be forced to stop working because you have become ill or very tired from working too hard.
Religiously
adj. — if you do something religiously, you do it regularly.
To break
verb — to fail to obey or follow a law, rule, or promise.
Questions and answers
Well, I haven't worked for a place with sets of rules and procedures for about a year and higher. But I suppose the most important one for me, even though it's an informal and unwritten one is no work at the weekends or in the holidays. It's just like what it sounds, really. Regardless of what else is happening, absolutely no work has to be done during designated time off or downtime. I say it's a rule, but like I also said, it's not a hard and fast thing and I do bend at some times when I'm bored or when something really needs to be done. Since I've worked for myself, when that does happen, it's not like I can take disciplinary or administrative action against myself. But I definitely make sure it's something that has to be done with new alternatives before I launch into whatever it is I have to do. So, really, it's more of a guideline or a principle rather than anything else, maybe a governing principle. I'd say it's pretty essential because otherwise, I'd be spending my time engaging with the never-ending list of things I need to do, like planning lessons and courses and, oh, doing research, for example, for different projects. Contacting students and preparing different presentations. While I love my job, I would prefer to have time for the people and the casual activities in my life, rather than just work all the time and run the risk of burning myself out. I suppose, ultimately, that's why I stick to it more often than not. If I didn't have a rule like this in my life, then I'd be pretty useless to other people in the end, including myself. Even if I don't follow it religiously, I still find it useful for preserving myself and my free time and all that energy that I need to do the things I love, like seeing my friends and going to the gym. The stuff that makes life worth living.
And do you always follow rules?
Oh no, I'm quite notorious for breaking the rules.