Unplugging isnt just an individual responsibility.Photo by Declan Sun onUnsplashYes! I could take care of review tasks during my sons baseball game. My interviewee chewed on her fingernails. I feel like Im chained to my desk. I would definitely use anapp.I was appalled.Our brief was to concept test the idea of a mobile app for financial and regulatory compliance users. It would complement the companys existing software, allowing users to review tasks and comments on the go. We received requests for this from Sales, Marketing, and customer surveysafter all, every B2B or B2C company needs its own mobile app,right?But I walked away from the research feeling shaken. The people we interviewed were excited about the app conceptnot because it would decrease their workload or simplify anything, but because they could use it to workmore.Creating something that entices people to spend extra time, off-the-clock, on work? Thats exploitation.Unethical design or flexibility enhancer?Let me explain. That mobile app could encourage inequity and manipulation in multipleways:Some folks start responding at all hours, which pressures the rest of the team to do the same. Failure to participate leads to resentment (shes not working as hard as I am) and poor performance reviewswhich disproportionately impact caretakers, parents (especially women), and people with disabilities.Hourly employees arent paid for overtime spent using the appwhich is corporate wagetheft.Companies often expect people to use their personal phones for work instead of providing one. This means agreeing to let the company wipe the device remotely including personal apps, data, andphotos.People cant properly unplug and rest after work. Burnout ensues. (Not so good for business in the long run,either.)At least, thats what I thought at thetime.Then the 2020 pandemic descended. All of those bad effects happened anyway as businesses shifted to remote workalong with positivechanges.We found out that working from home improves productivity and job satisfaction for manypeople.Remote work is good for the environment as fewer people commute. Hey, thats unpaid timetoo!Flexible schedules become the norm, benefitting the same groups singled outbefore.Now I work remotely too, and while I dont use mobile apps for my job, its due to diligent culture-building by management: loudly announcing PTO, mildly shaming folks who respond when out of office, and respecting workinghours.Were living in a cultural moment where work/life balance is seen as an individual responsibility. But the systems we design shape peoples lived experience just as much. As designers, we must take responsibility forthat.First of all, dont design deceptive patternsDeceptive patterns are designs that force the user to take an action that is not in their best interest. They are prolific on the web because they are phenomenally effective at boosting conversions. However, their use is unethical and legally problematic.Maria Rosala for Nielsen NormanGroupThese patterns are usually associated with ecommerce sites or services, but can also sneak into B2B software that people use for work. For example, making certain essential features of your web-based software available only in the mobile app to force people into downloading it. (Not cool,Etsy.)Etsy screenshot by mtmadhatt onReddit.Another common deceptive pattern in B2B settings is naggingsending repeated emails or notifications to users trying to upsell the product or touting a new feature. Dont waste peoples time by emailing them constantly and driving up the number of pings competing for their attention during (or outside of) theworkday.Further reading on deceptive patterns:Types of deceptive patternWhy I dont use the term dark patternanymoreSolid examples of deceptive patternsHelp users set boundariesIf your app is collaborative, provide settings for working hours and timezone. (You can prompt new users to set this up early to encourage consistent usage.) Then, consider how working hours should affect other features like notifications and messaging. Can the software shift subtly into night mode at the end of the day? Are login timeouts long enough to accommodate most workingdays?Google Calendars setting lets users automatically decline meetings outside working hours, and informs others when they book or view meetings outside that timeframe.Google Calendars working hours settings. Image byme.Outside working hours indicator, shown when a meeting is auto-declined. Image byme.Announce boundaries so users dont havetoClearly indicate when people are out of office, in a different timezone, or have upcoming PTO. Software can serve as a gentle buffer between coworkers, setting expectations for when a message will be read or responded to.Slack does this wellcoworkers can even schedule messages to be delivered later. This results in more intentional interactions and fewer that come across as rude orurgent.Some of Slacks automated messages about notifications and timezone. Image byme.Help people perceivetimeIts great to get into a flow state at work, but sometimes that leads to working right through the end of the day and cutting into family time. Consumer apps like Youtube help people disengage with bedtime reminders and sleep timers. (Reminders are automatically on for minors.) And Tiktok took this a step farther by partnering with Headspace to interrupt doomscrolling with mini meditation breaks. Consider: how could your product could help build time awareness without becoming annoying?Image credit:TiktokFor employees, its often meetings or busywork that eat up time rather than bite-size videos. Good UX can help users understand where their time is going in your product so they can better manage their workday. (Even better if you can eliminate busywork before it happens.)Google Calendar has solved for time awareness pretty well. Time Insights allow users to analyze how much focus time and meeting time their week contains and plan ahead. They can even present this data to a manager or team to help advocate for reducing unproductive meetings.Googles Time Insights. Image byme.Provide notification optionsMake sure users have flexibility in choosing which notifications are muted and when. Can a working hours setting double as quiet hours, with notifications muted outside that range? Can newsletters, updates, and direct messages be managed independently, so only the most important updates gothrough?Slack provides lots of notification pausing options. Image byme.The future of work/life balance is in ourhandsRemote work is here to stay. UX and product designers are set to shape the future of workplace culture so lets do itwell.What other patterns have you seen that affect users work-life balance? Leave a comment and keep the discussion going! And feel free to connect with me on LinkedIn.No AI was used in the creation of thisarticle.Your poor work/life balance might be my fault was originally published in UX Collective on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.