At work, coming back from vacation can become stressful. Whether you take a long weekend or traveled Around the World in 80 Days, you may dread the impossibly high mountain of work that awaits your return.
At a certain point, the stress of coming back to work, affects you more than the relaxation of being away from the job. Recently, I conducted a LinkedIn poll on how people deal with this challenge. For some it means working during your time off.
While there’s no one-size-fits-all solution, you may find some inspiration from how others handle coming back from vacation.
Block Off Time to Catch Up
Before you pack your suitcase, you block off time in your online calendar for catching up. Maybe it’s the morning you return or you block of some time every day, for the next week.
Either way, you make sure you have some protected time. If you don’t do this, you may find yourself fighting a productivity war on two fronts, as you try to catch up, while also attending to daily needs.
Check in While on Vacation
Some believe it’s good to periodically check into work while on vacation. They will set aside a certain amount of time to review calls and emails.
While this does pull you back into work mode, some can switch it off and return to relaxing. This takes discipline but it can thin out your to-do list upon your return.
The situation can become tricky if the people who reach out to you, keep reaching out to you, as if you were already back in the office.
Early Start on First Day Back
A few of you will endure a long first day back at work, if it allows you to fully enjoy your time off. They arrive early at the office, when they return.
This strategy can be useful, in that by coming in early, your office is probably quiet and you’ll be able to get a lot of work done, without interruptions.
There is a downside. By the end of this busy day, you may feel like you need a vacation.
Honor Work-Life Boundaries
While this choice received the fewest votes, you have to admire those who draw a line in the (beach) sand between work and play. For them, it’s about being present in the moment. They want to enjoy their time off.
Coming back from vacation may mean some busy days but they’ll deal with that when the time is right. These people also believe their absence will not result in the end of the world.
Final Thought
Think about which strategy might work well for you and try it out. The challenges of a busy workplace are probably here to stay but you can change how you react to them.
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