Summer holiday is fully going on, and chances are that you planned a journey to the sun, a beautiful city trip, or you’re going on an adventure into the wild. After a busy and maybe stressful period at work, you’re probably looking forward to these well-deserved days off.
But for all workaholics over there: don’t forget to turn off your work mode. It is no shame to put your work-related responsibilities aside. For those who have trouble with disconnecting from work during their holiday, we give a few useful tips.
Set an out of office
Before leaving work on your last day, don’t forget to set an out of office message. That way, people inside and outside your organization know you’re not available.
Important is that you include the period of your holiday in this message, and the contact details of a backup person to contact for urgent matters. This way, you avoid that people will keep getting back to you, and chances are bigger that they will contact your colleagues so that the issues and questions are already solved when you are back.
Make your phone work-free
This does obviously not mean that you should disable your phone. But it might be smart to remove all work-related apps, like your e-mail, Microsoft Teams, and other business tools. By doing so, you will not be tempted to check your emails, conversations, or notifications.
Is it too hard to effectively delete those apps? Start by turning off the push notifications. In that case, you won’t see the emails coming in, and you will not be constantly disturbed.
First workday as a backup
The day you return to work after a holiday is mostly busy and a little atypical. You should get back on track and get used to the work life. Chances are that your mailbox is overloaded with emails about projects, questions from customers or colleagues, and other business things (certainly when you succeeded in disconnecting from all these things during your days off :-)). That’s why you should keep your first day meeting-free, so that you have time to go through your mailbox. If necessary, set your out-of-office message one day extra.
Most of all: make fun!
Last but absolutely not least: plan your holiday full of great trips and nice activities. Make fun, laugh, and enjoy your days to the fullest. That way, you don’t even have time to think about work.
Did you plan your holiday off-season? Use august to get ahead of the back-to-work rush. August mainly is a calm period, but the busiest quarter is just around the corner. Take that as an advantage to prepare yourself for the last part of the year. Clean up your mailbox, check your agenda and plan your to-do’s efficiently, and make sure your workspaces are prepared for the return to the office: check if your meeting rooms are up to date with the right communication tools, fully equip your home office. By doing so, you can go stressless through the peak times. Another thing you can do during this period, is to challenge yourself to learn new things. Pursuing new skills can be of great advantage for further opportunities, and what’s a better time to educate yourself than the summer holiday months?