One Saturday, I looked at the missed calls and DingTalk messages on my phone and decided not to reply.

A QA colleague had called me twice after I finished work at six on Friday evening. My phone was on silent, so I missed both calls. The number was not saved in my contacts, and I did not feel like opening DingTalk to work out exactly who had called. Between six and ten that evening, the colleague tagged me five or six times in the group chat. On Saturday, they tagged me another five or six times.

I knew someone was trying to reach me. But I was not going to turn my weekend back into working hours because of it.

Leaving the Office Should Not Mean Being on Call Somewhere Else

Our team already works plenty of overtime. Monday through Thursday, we usually work until 8:30 p.m. On Fridays, we generally finish at six unless there is a specific requirement to stay later. We also often spend half a day to a full day working over the weekend.

Under the adjusted schedule around the Mid-Autumn Festival, that particular weekend was designated time off, so I did not go into the office.

Over the previous eight months, I had averaged more than fifty hours of overtime a month. I am willing to resolve issues during working hours, and I have consistently put extra time into the project. That does not mean the personal time I have left is automatically available, too.

Being willing to help does not mean being on call twenty-four hours a day.

If You Need Support, Communicate and Coordinate

What I object to is the approach: repeatedly calling and tagging me, without any prior agreement, as though I am expected to respond immediately outside working hours.

If testing requires a developer’s support after hours, that should be raised in advance and coordinated with the project manager and my direct manager. What needs to be done, why it has to happen at that time, and how long it is expected to take should all be clear.

If the request comes down to a colleague’s personal schedule, that also calls for a conversation beforehand. One person’s schedule should not automatically become another person’s overtime.

Unexpected urgent issues can, of course, require special arrangements. Even then, the project manager or direct manager should help establish priorities and decide who needs to be involved. Tagging me a few more times does not turn a request I never agreed to into an obligation to respond immediately.

Collaboration requires communication and respect for each other’s time.

Take Responsibility, but Keep Boundaries

To put it plainly, I am an individual contributor. I am not a middle manager or an executive, and I do not hold equity in the company. I take my responsibilities seriously, but I do not believe my role inherently includes being available for support whenever I am off the clock.

If I eventually run my own one-person company and serve my own customers, I would be willing to respond right away. In that situation, the rewards, risks, and service commitments would be mine to take on—and mine to decide.

In my current role, I want work arrangements to be clear, extra commitments to be discussed, and time off to be respected.

I will handle the issues I am responsible for during working hours. If something really needs attention outside those hours, explain the situation so we can coordinate.

But when the workday is over, I need time to live my own life, too.

Work and life need boundaries.