We all love a few days off, and we all definitely need it from time to time. But heading back to work after your well deserved break can sometimes seem like a daunting task. Going from relaxing in the sun with a book to the structured demands of your job is a big jump and can result in feelings of anxiety, stress and worry.
We’ve got some tips to help you leap back into your 9-5 with the energy you have managed to restore with your time off!
Plan ahead before you leave
Organising yourself and your workload before you hop on the plane can set you up for a stress-free return to the office.
A well structured handover of any unfinished tasks, or things that may crop up in your absence ensures that your colleagues can handle any crucial demands and your clients aren’t left in the dark. On top of this, a few weeks out of your last day, plan the weeks ahead (where possible) and try to tie up all the loose ends in this time.
Organise your inbox so that you’re not bombarded with 1000 spam emails when you’re back. Instead, route any junk into a folder so that you only have to sift through the important messages. Don’t forget to set your out of office too! And just before you leave, tidy up your desk so you can return to a calm and organised workstation.
Ease yourself back in
On your return to the office allow yourself some time to get back up to speed, set expectations for yourself and your team to allow a sort of grace period. This can be spent going through your inbox, reaching out to clients and ensuring you haven’t missed any important information. If possible, maybe head back into work mid to late week, this will give you a shorter first week back, making the transition smoother and calmer for yourself.
Don’t feel guilty for taking a break, in fact by taking annual leave you’re recharging your batteries and allowing you to refocus on your work which gives way to enhanced success. With this being said, on your first day back it may be a good idea to arrive a little early to prepare yourself for the day. Your team will be thankful that you are organised and ready to go when your shift starts.
And finally, be realistic with your achievements. You should feel no need to impress your manager or colleagues upon your return and therefore set achievable goals, manage your time wisely and celebrate the mini wins!
Reconnect
Set alignment calls or meetings with colleagues to bring yourself back up to speed. We all know that often those 30 email strong threads could have usually been hashed out over a 10 minute call so be kind to yourself and allow yourself to catch up on any developments in the easiest way possible.
These sorts of catch up conversations can also come in handy with customers/clients in order to notify them you’re back in work and ask them if any or their requests weren’t met whilst you were away.
When reconnecting with your work pals, share insights into your time away. A few photos can serve as a great icebreaker on your return to work!
Reflect and Adjust
Once you feel well and truly integrated back into your routine, evaluate your return to the office experience and think about what worked well and what could be improved for next time. You can even reach out to your team for feedback if you wish. By full proofing a strategy for next time you set yourself up for success and can return to work next time in a stress free, calm manner.
A quick, responsive process is what you need to attract and engage the best talent.
At Rectec we help organisations to find the best Applicant Tracking System or best Recruitment CRM to suit your needs, accompanied by our unique complementary technology marketplace, to help you build the perfect recruitment tech stack for your business.