I am just back from vacation. I found a big bin of snail mail, a zillion emails at home, and my inbox at work was bursting. My time zone was somewhere I was not. The fridge and cupboards were bare. I missed the opportunity to pick up my dog from the kennel the day I arrived (late flight). Was taking a vacation even worth it?
Vacations are necessary to give ourselves a rest and a break from work. They are meant to be renewing, revitalizing and re-energizing. And usually they are. See our July 2019 Breakaway Performance for some tips on making that happen, Executive Vitality-Boundaries on Vacation.
The question is: after a (hopefully) adequately long, fun, interesting, rejuvenating break, how does one re-enter the world of work in a way that is productive and also kind to vacation body and mind?
Hopefully you planned to have projects covered in your absence so that you are coming back to updates rather than chaos. See our August 2017 Breakaway Performance tip, Executive Vitality-Plan on a Good Vacation.
Here are some tips for easing post-vacation re-entry:
- Let co-workers know that you may need private reflection time to get re-centered on work.
- Pace your interactions with co-workers. Engage them to update you on the 3 things each thinks you need to know about now.
- Don’t work a 12-hour day your first day back. Recognize that you will also have personal matters you have to catch up on, not just work.
- Do everything you should be doing to take care of yourself routinely: adequate sleep, exercise, healthy eating, time with friends/family.
- Lean on any routines you have found helpful to manage your personal energy and your productivity.
- Try very hard to schedule meetings at least 48 to 72 hours after your return; in other words, not within the first two or three days.
How have your post vacation re-entries been? What can you do differently to ease re-entry?
