Most of us have experienced it. We enter the first day of vacation with a racing pulse or with sickness creeping in. For many of us, it feels as though we have to get everything done before the holiday, and before we know it, our bodies are telling us they’re under too much pressure.
Instead, we should try to slow down the pace so that landing into vacation is smoother. Easier said than done? Here are some helpful tips that you or your team can work with, so that both collectively and individually you can head into the holiday well-prepared, unplug from work, and recharge.
1. Make a realistic to-do list
It can feel tempting to “close all open projects” before the holiday, but often that’s an unrealistic ambition. Instead, you should:
Prioritise tasks: Which tasks need to be done, and which can wait? Maybe what feels very important right now can just as easily wait until after the holiday?
Make a clear to-do list with realistic deadlines.
Inform colleagues about what will be finished before the break and what will continue after.
2. What should go in the “parking lot”?
The parking lot is a list where you “park” all the tasks that can wait until after your holiday. Once a task is placed in the parking lot, you no longer need to spend time and energy trying to complete it. Instead, you can use your time on the tasks you have prioritised.
3. Prioritise and set each other free with expectation alignment
It can be difficult to prioritise the task pile on your own when there are dependencies on other colleagues’ tasks or the rest of the organisation. That’s why you, as a team, may need to prioritise the workload together. What is important for us and our core responsibilities to finish before the holiday?
When you prioritise tasks together, you also automatically align expectations with one another. Expectation alignment helps release each other from the feeling of “I should also manage to…”
Expectation alignment is especially important if you have tasks that others are waiting for you to complete or that colleagues, customers or others depend on.
4. Give yourself time to settle in
Going directly from 110 km/h at work into full relaxation can feel like culture shock. Therefore, plan your holiday so you have time to land:
Take a half day off before your holiday to make the transition easier.
Start your holiday with something that makes you calm – it could be a book, a walk in nature or simply some “nothing time”.
5. Prepare your return – not just your holiday
Something that often creates stress is the thought of everything waiting for you after the break. So make your ‘comeback’ a little easier:
Book a quiet, meeting-free day at your first day back to work.
Prepare tasks that are easy to dive into.
Spend 15 minutes before the holiday writing a short plan for your first week back.
By preparing, you can enjoy your holiday without worrying about the mountain of work waiting.
Have a great holiday!
