The end of summer is almost upon us. Were you able to create some amazing summer memories? Did it involve trips to new cities? Long road trips with friends and family? Did you immerse yourself in a new culture that forced you to try new food?
No matter how you spent your summer, the familiar, nagging feeling returns when your vacation ends – that feeling of going back to work. All good things come to an end – it’s time to get back to work.
DecisionHR understands how hard it is to bounce back, but we have a few ways that can make this transition easy. You won’t just feel rejuvenated, but as productive and motivated, just as you were before you left.
Unpack and Organize
As soon as you return home, unpack, do laundry, and organize all at once. Some people usually wait to complete these chores, but it’s beneficial to do it right away. This will get you in the right mindset because it allows you to move forward mentally, leaving vacation behind. Once you’ve finished cleaning and organizing, you will feel better about being home and prepared for the work week ahead of you.
Manage Your Schedule
Before you go away on vacation, set time on your calendar for catch-up time after you return to work. This time can be used to go over missed work while you get back into your normal work routine. This will prevent other employees from disturbing you and will help get you back on track as fast as possible. Spread this time out wisely, so you aren’t stressed with an abundance of work at once.
Set Realistic Goals
Once you return to work, you will be greeted with a full inbox, a ton of missed calls, and unfinished projects. Don’t stress out. It’s impossible to sort through everything, so take it slow and steady. Thankfully, there are email management tools in Outlook, which can automatically separate the emails you receive in different labeled folders. Create two folders, one for emails that you are cc’d on and one for emails that are marked with high importance. Once you’re back in the office, these emails will already be sorted and ready for you.
Get Excited
Just like when kids get that back to school excitement, try to look forward to those moments that make you excited to go to work. Is there a new business strategy that you’ve decided to implement? Do you miss the fun conversations you have with your employees? Finding something to get excited about will make the first day back a lot easier because you will arrive to work with great energy and focus.
Here at DecisionHR, we know that summer vacations make it challenging to shift back into a work mindset. Fortunately, there are ways to overcome those post vacation “feelings” that will make your transition back to work a lot smoother. Don’t let the fear of returning to work ruin your peace of mind.
