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Key points
- To help keep the invigorating benefits of a break, take time after returning home before jumping into work.
- Keep back-to-work stress to a minimum by limiting meetings during the first week back.
- Set aside time for a meal with friends or a walk in the neighborhood to keep spirits high.
You've come back from your holiday and you feel amazingly recharged. You've got a spring in your step, a smile on your face, and you feel ready for anything. Then, you open your inbox.
You have hundreds, if not thousands, of unanswered emails. Suddenly, your calm starts to dissipate and your blood pressure starts to rise. It all starts to pile up on you and you feel like you're light years behind. Yet, you've only been back at work for an hour or two. That's no way to start your first day at work after a holiday. It's definitely not the way to do it if you want to keep the invigorating benefits of that well-earned break you just had.
So, here's what you do to keep your stress to a minimum after a break:
1. Give yourself at least half a day after your holiday before you jump back into work. Take this time to unpack, do some laundry, and fill the fridge with food. Do whatever you need to do to wrap up the holiday bits and slowly start getting back into your day-to-day routine. When you do this, you're much more likely to suffer from less stress going back into work because your personal bits are already sorted. You will also feel more prepared going back into work like this, and you'll be able to rest more when you come home after work. This is important as the first week back at work will be more tiring than usual because you're simply not used to it yet. Take it easy and take your time.
2. As much as possible, limit your meetings and scheduled commitments the first week back. This enables you to focus on dealing with your overflowing inbox and getting your priorities straight. The worst thing you can do is have back-to-back meetings the first few days with little or no time to actually catch up on what you've missed. Keep your calendar as clear as possible and get started on categorizing your unread emails. Split them into categories like urgent, non-urgent, quick responses, and no action needed. Then, start by focusing on the urgent ones (one by one!), before diving into the quick responses. The more you focus on doing one thing at a time, and similar things within a certain time frame, the more efficient you will be.
3. Up your fun the week you're back. Go out for a meal with your friends. Walk your favorite route in your neighborhood. Look at the pictures from your holiday. Post-holiday blues can be very common if you go straight into all work and no play. Hence, make a little time for play your first week back—and the weeks that follow. This will help you to feel happy and energized even though your holiday is behind you. And remember, there will be plenty more holidays in the future.
