We all have our history of horrific holidays. Realizing you have the flu as soon as you’ve boarded the plane to paradise, or your sister and her husband decide to pay you a surprise visit with their three (savage) children just as you sat down with a bottle of red and all six seasons of Game of Thrones that you were planning on binge watching in nothing but sweatpants. The list is unnervingly endless.
Alas, while these might be minor setbacks in the grander scheme of personal indulgences you may have had planned, I am certain I speak for all with utmost conviction that regardless of all the unexpected, unwanted surprises we may face during our ‘me’ time, nothing ever seems to prepare us enough for that very moment when you start counting down the days you have left before you have to return to reality and our jobs.
Having worked the first ten of my fifteen professional years in the oilfield rotating from home (Dubai) to work and back every five weeks; I have honed a few tips that always seemed to work for me. Here’s hoping they work in your favor:
1.) Power Down
Schedule permitting; allow yourself the last couple of days of your vacation relaxing your body and powering down your mind. Wind up your internal clock by turning in at an appropriate hour ensuring you get your healthy seven to eight hours of snooze time.
2.) Ducks In A Row
Get organized a day or two prior to returning to the fray. Pick out your favorite shirt and trousers and have them pressed. If the ‘just-returned-from-holiday’ you feels that your wardrobe is uncharacteristically stale, treat yourself to some new threads that make you feel positive and confident. Ensure your refrigerator is well stocked with your favorite fare.
3.) Break A Leg
Figuratively of course. Kick-start your mind by exercising your body. Nothing gets those endorphins raging than an exhilarating workout at the gym, or going for a run around your local park or by the beach. Load up all your favourite summer tracks and turn it up. This is a surefire way of uplifting downcast spirits.
4.) Battle Ready
Ease your transition of returning to the grind by (this might sting), opening up your laptop and rifling through emails. Staring at the screen, waiting with anxiety setting in, as the unread emails go well into triple digits and it’s only loaded forty percent. Fret not; Remind yourself that a fair share of those are CC’s. Once synced; prioritize based on subject and sender. Keep your diary free of major appointments for the first few days. It will give you time to catch up on what you have missed and strategize next moves.
5.) Lemon Squeezy
Do your best to keep your first day as easy and light as possible. Engage in water dispenser banter with office colleagues about your holiday to while away some time. Maybe even make plans for the coming weekend so you have something to look forward to.
6.) Escape Artist
Come 4:45pm, tiptoe out of there.