MOVE 52 · BOUNDARIES · FREE
Protect Your Availability Hours
Publish clear response times and working hours, so clients and colleagues know when to expect you instead of testing your limits.
Unstated availability becomes infinite availability.
WHY IT WORKS
When response expectations are vague, the fastest past reply becomes the standard. Stating hours and typical response times up front resets expectations collectively, reduces anxiety on both sides and makes out-of-hours requests clearly exceptional.
WHEN TO USE IT
- You feel pressure to reply instantly at all hours.
- You are onboarding a new client or joining a new team.
WHEN NOT TO USE IT
- Your role genuinely requires on-call availability by agreement.
- A short-term crisis needs extra availability you have chosen to give.
SIGNALS IT FITS
- Messages arrive late at night expecting quick replies.
- You check messages constantly out of worry.
PREPARATION
- Decide your working hours and response window (for example within one business day).
- Define what counts as an emergency and how to reach you for one.
STEP BY STEP
- Write a short availability statement.
- Share it at onboarding or in your signature.
- Respond within the stated window, not faster by habit.
- Point back to the statement if expectations drift.
OPENING LINE
“So you know what to expect, here's how I handle messages.”
SCRIPT
I'm available 9am to 5:30pm, Monday to Friday, and reply to messages within one business day. For urgent production issues, call the support line.
LIKELY RESPONSES & COUNTERS
- If they expect an instant reply anyway
- Reply within your window and briefly reference your hours.
- If they have a genuine emergency
- Honour the emergency route you defined; that keeps the system credible.
SECOND MOVE
If someone persistently ignores the hours, use Hold the Boundary on Repeat.
FOLLOW-UP
Revisit the statement when your role or capacity changes.
COMMON MISTAKES
- Stating hours and then replying at midnight.
- Defining 'urgent' so loosely that everything qualifies.
WALK-AWAY CONDITIONS
- A client requires constant out-of-hours availability beyond what you agreed or are paid for.
EXAMPLE (FICTIONAL)
A bookkeeper added hours and a one-day response promise to her email signature. Late-night 'urgent' requests dropped sharply, and no client complained.
ETHICAL BOUNDARY
Respect contractual availability obligations you have agreed to; this Move is for expectations, not for breaking commitments.
RELATED MOVES
Content version 1 · Drafted by Power Move IQ Editorial · Not yet human-reviewed · Educational decision support, not legal, financial or employment advice.