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NIT alum with US clients sleeps at 10 pm, shares how he fixed work-life balance
The founder shared how his clients reacted when he decided to stop working to US time.
An NIT alumnus and founder has sparked a viral conversation after revealing how he reclaimed his health by refusing to work on US time. For years, the entrepreneur followed the "cost of doing business" by sleeping at 4 am and missing sunlight to accommodate international clients. However, after a severe burnout left him bedridden, he realised the problem wasn't the time zone, but his own lack of boundaries. By implementing a strict 10 pm bedtime and limiting his availability to IST hours, he expected a backlash that never came. Instead, his clients respected the move.
“I'm in India. Most of my clients are in the US and I still sleep at 10 PM every night. How? I set a boundary. And I stick to it,” Ashwini Kumar, whose LinkedIn suggests he stays in Dubai, wrote.
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He shared how it was previously when working with US clients. “Sleeping at 4 AM. Waking up at 12 PM. Missing sunlight for weeks. Minimal social life.”
He followed it as he thought it was “the cost of doing business internationally.” However, things shifted when he burned out, and it resulted in him being bedridden for two straight days.
“That's when I realized I was the problem. Not the clients. Not the timezone. Me. I was too scared to set a boundary.”
That is when he decided to step out of the “Asian entrepreneur mindset,” in which individuals try to be available 24/7 to clients in the USA. As a result, he decided to go to bed at 10 pm every night and made it clear that this was “non-negotiable”.
What happened next?
“Here's what happened: I told every US client: My available hours are 8 AM - 9 PM IST. That's 10:30 PM - 10:30 AM EST. I expected pushback. I got: Totally understand. We'll make it work,” Kumar shared.
He added that while he made the decision to safeguard his health and mental health, he also made sure that clients' work never suffered.
“I over-indexed on communication: End-of-day updates became non-negotiable (what's done, what's next, what's blocked). Morning syncs reviewing their overnight questions. Loom videos replacing meetings (10-min video > 60-min call),” he explained. He also sat down with each client to explain the situations that would constitute an “emergency”.
Kumar claimed that his one decision drastically changed the way he works. “Now we have systems that work WITHOUT me. They wake up to my work. I wake up to their responses. Meetings? Down 80%. Only for actual strategy. AND work and my life got much BETTER Turns out, clients EXPECT you to have boundaries.”
“Your timezone is not a disadvantage. Your lack of boundaries is,” he added.
What did social media say?
The posts prompted varied responses, with some agreeing with Kumar and others sharing their own perspectives. An individual commented, “That shift works because you backed the boundary with systems, not just a rule. Once async and clarity are in place, timezone stops being a constraint and becomes an advantage.”
Another argued, “Interesting view, but I think that while setting boundaries is essential, the feasibility of these specific hours can sometimes depend heavily on the nature of the industry and the level of collaboration required for certain roles.”
A third commented, “Trying to do the same. Realised that it's not healthy long term, and most clients prefer async comms.” A fourth wrote, “Love this. Struggling with something similar, and I am taking a page out of your book to make my day work. Thanks for sharing!”
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According to his LinkedIn profile, Ashwini Kumar completed his MCA from NIT Durgapur. After working in different tech roles across various companies, including TCS, he started his own company in 2022.
