The vital importance of boundaries
Hierarchy, routine and clearly defined responsibilities - not to mention leaders who step into their authority - are all pretty uncool at work at the moment it would appear, with people in many sectors striving for flat 'democratic' structures in which 'everyone's a leader', increasingly fluid forms of engagement, and co-dependency with colleagues across roles. Of course, the digitalisation and globalisation of many workplaces has played a part in this, but even leaders in more 'traditional' or 'conservative' sectors are under pressure from the zeitgeist to reform, and the most influential voices suggest they should start by clearing away some of those musty old fashioned barriers to modern, agile and liberating work.
Of course it's funky to challenge the aspects of organisational life that appear outdated and 'in the way', but there's a real danger of throwing the baby out with the bathwater when it comes to boundaries. This is particularly true where a motive for modernisation is to improve employee wellbeing and engagement. The irony of this is that boundaries and the effective management of them is key for individual and organisational effectiveness, in large part because of their protective effect on people's sense of psychological safety.
In a nutshell, this is because us humans need to know where we stand and where our territory begins and ends. This search for our edges was actually at the core of our development in infancy.
Boundaries are the limits people maintain with respect to others and their environment, and include:
mental boundaries - concerning the freedom to have one's own thoughts and opinions as separate from other people's
emotional boundaries - concerning how emotionally available one is to other people
physical boundaries - concerning personal space, privacy and agency over one's body
conversational boundaries - concerning things one may or may not wish to discuss with others
material boundaries - concerning one's agency with respect to possessions like money
internal boundaries - concerning one's capacity to self-regulate and focus on self as well as others
contractual boundaries - concerning the advance specification of an agreement
group boundaries - concerning the composition of a group, team or organisation
time boundaries - concerning the management of time as a finite resource
Boundaries like these help to protect us, clarify our own responsibilities and those of others, and - like a second skin - serve to preserve our physical and emotional integrity. They help us stay focused on ourselves and our needs, as well as on the things outside of ourselves that are important to us. They also help us maintain a sense of our own identity as separate from but in vital interaction with other people, groups, organisations, systems and objects.
In the field of psychoanalysis, boundaries are thought to serve two vital functions. Firstly, they form a 'container' in which we feel relatively free from the threat of disruptive unknowns and can thrive and develop (as an infant) or act with agency (as an adult). Secondly, they serve to create a 'holding space' in which we can safely take risks without our usual fear of the consequences, whether this is embarrassment, shame or worse.
In a therapeutic context, the concept of containment relates to how a therapist provides a safe place for the client to explore feelings that might otherwise be experienced as overpowering, bewildering or intolerable, and to think about things which might have been repressed or 'forgotten'. Once a client feels the containment is reliable enough, they might become able to share some of the feelings that they most fear, and even some of what has been hidden away. It is then that the therapist's capacity to 'hold' becomes important; to take what the client had previously feared and make it safe enough so the client can engage in a process of re-shaping it into something that can be more easily tolerated.
Seen from this perspective, it's clear why boundaries are so important in the workplace if one needs people to engage, work at their best and stay healthy. It's also clear why things can go so wrong when boundaries are unacknowledged, disrespected, neglected or broken, resulting in burnout, team conflict and dysfunction, wilful blindness, low levels of trust, silos, toxic organisational cultures and unethical practice, et al.
So how can we encourage and support people in organisations to manage boundaries more effectively?
Firstly, there's a need to clarify the importance of boundaries and the need to impose or establish them in a particular situation. This requires both an awareness of one's own needs, tendencies and emotional state (self-awareness) and an awareness of the dynamics of the environment one is in, both in terms of other people's needs, feelings and tendencies and those of the wider system (contextual awareness). Developing these forms of awareness through intentional and reflective practices is vital work for a coach or organisational consultant.
Secondly, there's a need to help people clarify their boundaries clearly, consistently and assertively, particularly with respect to expectations. Assumptions and supposition around boundaries arise as a result of poor or absent communication, leading to misunderstandings that can escalate quicky into defensive behaviours, psychological withdrawal, conflict and 'political' turf-wars. The most effective boundaries are those that have been agreed collaboratively with open, upfront communication about intentions and needs.
And finally, boundaries need to be maintained, which should involve a continuous process of evaluating whether or not they need changing to suit a dynamic context. Of course, boundaries will also occasionally need to be defended when challenged and the ability to do so assertively and without 'losing it' is important. This is aided by clarifying the consequences if boundaries are pushed or ignored and then following through if needed in a way that matches the violating behaviour and is most likely to result in the required change.
This all sounds very easy but of course there are all sorts of obstacles to effective boundary identification, setting and maintenance in the workplace. People very often fear conflict or negative responses when trying to assert a boundary or lack confidence in their own authority, and so avoid it altogether. Indeed, this may be founded in prior experience. In some sectors and organisations - particularly those where people feel driven by a sense of 'vocation' or 'purpose' - the prevailing culture may mitigate against certain boundaries.
Or people might not realise that a boundary is required or appropriate. As above, it's not a cool thing in many of today's fast-paced, free-flowing organisations, so the very concept of boundaries can be dismissed. The outcome of this though can be catastrophic. In a 'boundaryless' organisation - or at least where certain key boundaries are missing for one reason or another - one often sees a psychodrama played out where thoughts, feelings, needs, and expectations can't be expressed openly and so are communicated in other ways, including passive-aggressive behaviours, the formation of alienated cliques and - over time - the development of structures that may actually inhibit a team or organisation's ability to achieve its aims.
It can sometimes take courage to establish and maintain effective boundaries, but it always takes intentional effort. It's important for individuals to understand that they will need to start slowly and acknowledge that their early attempts may be imperfect, but that it's a fundamental workplace skill that contributes to overall performance in the same way as other skills. Coaching can help with this, but it's perhaps even more important that the prevailing organisational culture is one that accepts healthy boundary setting and encourages ongoing maintenance. This is where leadership comes in, supported - perhaps - by consultancy that can help leaders stay accountable and model effective boundary work themselves. The impact on resilience, trust and performance means that this is vital work.