Back to Work after Summer

Handsome young businessman relaxing one moment in the office.
0

8 things successful people do after getting back from vacation

Coming back from a magical vacation isn’t much fun.

One minute, you’re lounging by the sparkling, blue sea without a care in the world. The next, you’re back in your gray cubicle, feeling jet-lagged and sunburned.

But your transition back to the office doesn’t have to be a total nightmare. In fact, there are certain steps you can take on your first day back that’ll make the whole process much easier.

With some simple strategizing, you’ll get back into your usual work groove in no time:

Get an early start

If you want to ease back into work, you’ve got to prepare.

“Get to bed early the night before, and get in a little early,” Lynn Taylor, a national workplace expert and the author of “Tame Your Terrible Office Tyrant: How to Manage Childish Boss Behavior and Thrive in Your Job,” told Business Insider. “That will mitigate the workload avalanche and give you a head start, sans distraction.”

Don’t stretch yourself thin

Don’t schedule a ton of meetings and deadlines during your first day back. That’ll just leave you feeling overwhelmed and behind on your work.

“Ideally, try and keep your first day back schedule-free from any meetings or appointments — keep it as open as possible so that you have the entire day free to catch up and not feel overwhelmed,” Michael Kerr, an international business speaker and author of “The Humor Advantage,” told Business Insider.

Kerr recommended strategizing before you begin your day: “Take several minutes to plan your day before diving in, focus on priorities, and don’t be afraid to ask for support.”

If you’re facing an avalanche of work, try prioritizing your tasks, Taylor said:

“Handle emergencies first. Decide what’s most important to your job, your boss, and your project list. Look at the big picture, not what comes to you sequentially. Learn to say ‘no’ to low priority items hurled your way.”

Get caught up

Before diving back in to individual emails and projects, Ryan Kahn, a career coach, founder of The Hired Group, and author of “Hired! The Guide for the Recent Grad,” told Business Insider that it’s important to get a broad idea of how things were while you were gone.

“Figure out if there were any major events or changes that occurred,” he said. “This way, you’ll be generally up to speed before diving in deep into the day-to day details of your work.”

Don’t get lost in your inbox

Beware of spending too much time responding to the emails you missed while you were out.

“It’s easy to get sucked into the vortex of responding to every email without considering whether it’s the best use of your time on the first day back,” Kerr said. “Don’t confuse email activity with productive work, so be strategic and only respond to email that are time sensitive.”

Check in with your team and customers

Now that you’re back, it’s a good idea to touch base with your boss and coworkers to let them know what you’re working on. Taylor added that it’s important to keep these interactions brief and relatively cursory, until “you’re comfortably caught up.”

You should also connect with your best clients.

“Take the time to connect with one or two clients to let them know they’re top of mind with you and that you’re back if they need anything,” Kerr said. “It’s a simple customer service touch point that can make a big impression.”

Take care of yourself

You might be tempted to work yourself into the ground after your vacation. After all, you’ve had your time to relax. Now, you’ve got to put your nose to the grindstone.

But this approach will probably end up backfiring.

Instead, Kerr said to make sure you take breaks, stretch, and eat well during the day. Kerr said:

“It’s easy to fall in the trap of feeling like you must put your head down and plow through the first day back non-stop until everything is done. But tackling your first day with that approach will not only potentially cause you great stress; it will increase that chances that you’ll make mistakes and likely result in you being less, rather than more, productive.”

Taylor says that, at a breakneck pace, you’ll eventually tire, and your efforts will be counterproductive.

“Take an extra break during the day, and make sure you get in a longer break than usual,” she said. “You need to create a transition of relaxation.”

She added that, after work, it’s important to resume your normal routine and get to bed at a decent hour.

Stay focused

There’s bound to be a bunch of distractions waiting for you back at the office.

“People may ask you how your vacation was,” Taylor said. “Social media and news headlines will make you feel like you’ve lost touch with your friends and the world at large.”

Don’t waste time chatting or scrolling through the news. Try to focus on your work.

Taylor also advised against showing off all your vacation photos unless you’re at lunch and your close confidantes have asked.

“For one, it will distract you from work. Two, you don’t want to gloat to the entire staff,” she said.

Think back to your time off

Instead of feeling blue about being back and work, look back on your fondest memories from your vacation with gratitude.

“Try to extend the state of bliss you achieved while gone as best you can,” Taylor said. “Remember: You are in control of your thoughts.”

Source

Related Blogs

  • https://www.advancecareer.com.cy/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Unlocking-Career-Opportunities-Your-Guide-to-Finding-Jobs-in-Cyprus-236x168.jpg
    Mar 22, 2024
    Unlocking Career Opportunities: Your…

    Unlocking Career Opportunities: Your Guide to Finding Jobs in Cyprus Cyprus has some exciting career opportunities in recent years, making our island a better place..

    0 Read More
  • https://www.advancecareer.com.cy/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Why-you-should-give-a-good-interview-experience-to-candidates-236x168.jpg
    Feb 23, 2024
    Why you should give…

    As a recruitment agency in Cyprus, one of our primary objectives is to ensure a positive interview experience for our candidates. We maintain regular communication..

    0 Read More
  • https://www.advancecareer.com.cy/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/If-Youre-Not-Outside-Your-Comfort-Zone-You-Wont-Learn-Anything-236x168.jpg
    May 6, 2022
    If You’re Not Outside…

    You need to speak in public, but your knees buckle even before you reach the podium. You want to expand your network, but you’d rather..

    0 Read More
  • https://www.advancecareer.com.cy/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/How-to-Improve-Employee-Motivation-and-Commitment-236x168.jpg
    Sep 25, 2020
    How to Improve Employee…

                      [In the long term, employee motivation and well-being strongly influence organizational  health, customer satisfaction and loyalty..

    0 Read More
  • https://www.advancecareer.com.cy/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Effective-Jobsearch-236x168.jpg
    Mar 6, 2020
    Effective Job Search

    The Key To Carrying Out A Productive And Effective Job Search In my experience as a career coach, I have found that people who are..

    0 Read More
  • https://www.advancecareer.com.cy/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Onboarding-Techniques-236x168.jpg
    Feb 14, 2020
    On-boarding Techniques

    10 Must - Follow Company: On-boarding Techniques Making new employees feel comfortable and useful is as easy as 1, 2, 3, 4….. Effective employee on-boarding..

    0 Read More
  • https://www.advancecareer.com.cy/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/2020-Resolution-Hacks-236x168.jpg
    Jan 3, 2020
    2020 Resolution Hacks

    Resolution Hacks That Actually Work It’s that time of year again, when we all make New Year's resolutions. But will this year be any different..

    0 Read More
  • https://www.advancecareer.com.cy/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/Career-Clarity-236x168.jpg
    Dec 27, 2019
    Career Clarity

    5 Tips To Gain Career Clarity Between Christmas And New Year’s Day The week between Christmas and New Year’s Day is one of the slowest..

    0 Read More
  • https://www.advancecareer.com.cy/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/Holiday-Madness-236x168.jpg
    Dec 20, 2019
    Minimize the Holiday Madness

    Ways To Minimize The Holiday Madness It’s said that it’s the most wonderful time of the year. But for many, it’s also the most stressful...

    0 Read More
  • https://www.advancecareer.com.cy/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/Spend-your-day-wisely-236x168.png
    Nov 22, 2019
    Spend your day wisely

    How To Spend Your Working Day Wisely And Actually Get Things Done Time doesn’t discriminate. The CEO of a Fortune 500 company with an overloaded..

    0 Read More
  • https://www.advancecareer.com.cy/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/interview1-236x168.jpeg
    Oct 18, 2019
    Tricky Interview Question

    How To Respond To The Question ‘Why Do You Want To Work Here?’ One question you can expect to encounter during almost every job interview..

    0 Read More
  • https://www.advancecareer.com.cy/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/HR-Trends-236x168.png
    May 17, 2019
    HR Trends

    The Future Is Now: Three HR Trends That Will Transform Your Organization In 2019 Record low unemployment and skyrocketing turnover rates are presenting new challenges..

    0 Read More
  • https://www.advancecareer.com.cy/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/Starting-a-New-Job-236x168.png
    Apr 19, 2019
    Starting a New Job?

    When You Start a New Job, Pay Attention to These 5 Aspects of Company Culture When you join an organization, you have a short window..

    0 Read More
  • https://www.advancecareer.com.cy/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/The-Why-You-Left-Question-236x168.jpg
    Jan 11, 2019
    Reasons for Leaving?

    How To Answer Why You Left (Or Want to Leave) Your Employer If you want the job, don't reveal this. Job interviews are designed to..

    0 Read More
  • https://www.advancecareer.com.cy/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/Happy_New_Year_2019-236x168.png
    Jan 8, 2019
    Happy New Year!

    This is the beginning of ANYthing you WANT! A New Year, a New Start and Way to Go! Advance Career Dream Team is wishing you..

    0 Read More
  • https://www.advancecareer.com.cy/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Culture-Is-the-Secret-236x168.jpg
    Dec 28, 2018
    Culture Is the Secret

    Losing Employees to Clients or Competitors? Culture Is the Secret to Retaining Them. Businesses lose employees all the time. At any moment, you could lose..

    0 Read More
  • https://www.advancecareer.com.cy/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Outsourcing-HR-and-Payroll-236x168.png
    Jul 13, 2018
    Outsourcing HR and Payroll

    When Writing Your Business Plan, Be Sure to Include This A plan to outsource back office departments can save you time and money. Since the..

    0 Read More
  • https://www.advancecareer.com.cy/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/happy-colleagues-giving-five-236x168.jpg
    Nov 10, 2017
    Your Impact at Work!

    What Is Your Impact? We keep throwing this word around called "impact." Do you know what your impact is and how would you define, discover,..

    0 Read More
  • https://www.advancecareer.com.cy/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/stressed-woman-at-office-236x168.jpg
    Sep 28, 2017
    Wrong Job?

    Six Emotions That Signal You Are In The Wrong Job Almost a third of your time on earth will be spent working. That’s a big..

    0 Read More