It can be hard to rebound after months of a holiday mindset, and you might be going back to work after the holidays feeling drained this January. Luckily, there are ways to drop the feeling of dread hanging over your head, and help your teammates (and yourself) mentally prepare for the transition back instead.
Below are seven ways to feel refreshed as you go back to work after the holidays, complete with relevant questions for your first meeting back.
1. Grow from your experiences
Contrary to what many might think, the holidays can be a stressful time, and that stress has only been exacerbated by the pandemic. But whether you realize it or not, you could have been cultivating skills during those tough family dinners or frustrating travel-filled weekends that will benefit you in life, and at work. In particular, to switch your mindset, think about a situation that troubled you over the holidays, whether it was related to work, family, or otherwise. Now think about how you solved that problem and left it a better person.
Question for the team: What’s a challenge you faced over the holidays? How did you overcome it?
2. Organize your emails
To mentally prepare for the transition back, you’ve got to get ready to clear the largest amount of mental clutter you have – namely, your emails. Don’t be ambitious, and attempt to tackle everything all at once, as it might jumble your brain to wrestle with so many topics and timelines. Instead, sort your emails by project, respondent, deadline, or type of correspondence, and chip away at them incrementally over the course of the week. Otherwise, you might feel like you’re drowning in a sea of unread responses, and it could make you feel more drained than you already do. In addition, make sure to keep an eye out for check for email phishing and other email scams, as some people may try to take advantage of the holiday season.
Question for the team: What do you consider a high-priority/low-priority email?
3. Plan your week
The next important thing is to make sure that you have a solid plan for your first week back. An overzealous mistake is to pack your first week back, thinking that you’ll shift into the right mindset immediately to make up for the doldrums of the past month. But easing your way back into work with a personal plan, separate from your meetings and check-ins, is the right way to start back on the right foot. You can even email your manager the day before you return with an update on your priorities, or schedule a 1:1 the day of your return to go over what your first week or two back should look like.
Question for the team: What are three easy tasks we can tackle this week to get our flow back?
4. Keep things in perspective
One enormous mistake is to put all of your eggs in this seasonal basket and see the holidays as a vacation rather than a ritual. For many, while time off might be included in your week away, your time was packed with travel that drained your emotional and physical wellbeing even more than work. Research shows that, in fact, only a “very relaxing” holiday trip was proven to boost happiness – those who reported trips that were just “relaxing” had the same levels of happiness as those who didn’t travel at all. So put your holidays in perspective – sometimes, they’re not a cakewalk.
Question for the team: What’s one thing that’s absolutely necessary for a relaxing vacation?
5. Something to look forward to
If you don’t feel recharged after the holidays, and you’ve come to realize that it truly wasn’t a vacation, give yourself something to look forward to, and plan an event that you know will refresh your spirits. You could begin researching a spa weekend, a themed movie night with friends, dinner with a partner, or even a team get-together. Having something cooking on the backburner as you’re working will make you feel more inspired to push through your post-holiday blues.
Question for the team: What’s our next inspiring milestone? How will it make a difference in our lives?
6. Talk it out
If you’re feeling drained, depressed, or overburdened after the holidays, one of the best things you can do is talk it out. Get a hold of a colleague, teammate, or even an understanding manager, and talk candidly about how you’re feeling, as it’s guaranteed to improve your mood. A study from USC Marshall School of Business shows that sharing your stress with a companion may indeed make both of you feel less overwhelmed. Then, after you’re done venting to each other, your bond is stronger, your sense of relief is greater, and you can both have someone to cheer you on when you’re feeling sluggish or unmotivated.
Question for the team: What are some ways that we can promote psychological safety on this team?
7. Do a physical refresh
We all know that the holidays are notorious for overeating, drinking too much, and sleeping in. But even an amateur wellness hobbyist knows that what you do to your body affects your mind. Part of the reason you’re not feeling refreshed is that you’re not putting refreshing, healthy stuff into your system, and you’re not as active as you were in the warmer weather. However, while you might be tempted to start a juice cleanse on the same day as your new running regime, don’t push yourself too hard, as that may aggravate your already overburdened system. Take it slow, and listen to what your body needs so that you can begin to recharge.
Question for the team: How can we hold each other accountable to ensure healthy workplace habits?
