How to supercharge your productivity after a holiday
The first day back in work after a vacation or time off can be one of the most daunting days of the year. You’re worried about the amount of unopened emails in your inbox and perhaps the mountain of paperwork waiting on your desk.
Your productivity takes a hit and it can be difficult to get back into your normal working rhythm. Here are our top five tips on how to overcome those post-holiday blues and recharge your productivity.
1. Plan for your return
Managing your post-holiday productivity begins before you’ve even left the office. Putting steps in place before you leave will help manage the workload upon your return.
Replying to everything in your inbox and making sure all of your colleagues are aware of your upcoming absence are sure fire ways of making sure you’re not overrun on your first day back. Another trick is to write down the first three things you have to do when you return to the office. Pick tasks that can be completed quickly and leave them on a post-it on your keyboard. This will be the first thing you see when you land back at your desk.
In the fog of the first few minutes back at the office you have tasks to be completed. Also completing these few easy tasks gives you a good momentum to tackle the rest of your day.
2. Don’t dive straight in
It can be easy to see a heap of unopened emails in your inbox and a mountain of paperwork on your desk and think about tackling it straight away, don’t.
Launching yourself into your inbox could mean you’ll be stuck there for the rest of the day. It’s easy to get lost in replying to emails and before you know it, a few hours have past and you’re no closer to completing any tasks. Some workers have adopted the technique of putting an automated reply onto their emails for their first few days back in the office, “Thank you for your email. However, I have recently returned from annual leave and it may take me a little longer to reply to your email. Thank you in advance for your patience.”
Putting this reply or simply organising your emails by importance and tackling the urgent ones first means you’ll become less bogged down in your inboxb and you can dedicate more time working on upcoming tasks.
3. Form a plan
The best way to be productive on your first day back in the office is to make a plan. Outline exactly what you want to achieve and stick to it.
Yes, it may sound boring and yes it may take up some time but it is the best way to keep you on track. Methodically list everything that needs to be done and when it needs to be done by. Putting everything in order of importance and breaking them into easy manageable tasks will keep you on track during your first day and perhaps week back.
4. Capitalise on your relaxed mind
During your annual leave is hopefully when you are most relaxed. Your mind is free from the usual stresses and clutter and you can think clearly.
This is the time when ideas can begin to flow. Some of the best ideas come when you see things more clearly and have the time to really think. While we don’t recommend spending your time off thinking about work maybe use some of the time to think of new ideas and to do some planning. Jot ideas down and have them ready to look over again when you get back to the office.
By doing this you will be full of fresh ideas when you return to work and you can begin putting them in motion. Without trying too hard you have boosted your productivity.
5. Be positive
Your mindset can be one of the biggest barriers in your effort to readjust to the working day after a holiday.
Instead of feeling down that you are no longer on vacation and letting the post-holiday blues take over, try and remain positive. Feeling down and unhappy will only leave you in a bad mood and tasks will seem unachievable.
It’s important to be kind to yourself. Forcing yourself into a positive mood will never work, but acknowledging your holiday time is now over and it’s time to get back into the working mood will help your complete task and boost your productivity.
While it’s important to enjoy time away and take an opportunity to recharge it is also important to get back into the swing of things. A holiday can be the perfect opportunity to reaccess and recharge yourself to tackle a workload upon your return.