How to Ease Post Vacation Re-entry

 

No matter how much you love your work, returning from vacation can be difficult.

The barrage of emails, phone messages and projects that often pile up can feel heavy, burdensome and downright overwhelming. You may feel soft and ill equipped to address them. After all, it took a while to settle those engines down. And there is only so much even the boldest of coffee can do for you.

But vacation re-entry doesn’t have to be a stress filled experience. 

In fact, when you approach returning from vacation consciously and intentionally, you can make the most of the relaxation you enjoyed in much the same way that you maximize any investment.   That precious down time you allowed yourself can put you ahead of the curve rather than behind it.

This week and next, I’ll be exploring strategies for doing just that. Let’s start with the first…

(1) Get clear on what you most want.

 The beauty of a vacation is that it allows you to get some distance from the myriad of little things that keep you from seeing the bigger picture in your life. You can reconnect with what’s most important to you ­­– and get clarity on what you want more of and less of.

It often happens on more of a feeling level than a thinking level. You may find yourself buoyed by possibility, even if you aren’t sure exactly what it is.  Time away ushers in new energy that allows us to feel life could be so much simpler, richer, satisfying and fulfilling.

Don’t let that feeling disappear just because your vacation has come to an end. Before you jump back into your work, tune into the bigger picture of what you want to experience and see if you can feel it as though it already exists.

Do you want more simplicity? To cut through complexity with confidence and ease? To infuse your work with more optimism and lightness?

How do you want to feel at the end of the day? See if you can go there and experience it now. Imagine yourself driving home feeling grateful for what you accomplished and enthusiastic about what is on the horizon. Then return to the moment and approach your day from that frame of mind.

Tuning into the mindset that will keep you in sync with your vision will guide your actions in ways that are most likely to bring your desired state to fruition. So, lock it in, and commit to staying aligned and returning to that conscious state of mind if and when something momentarily steals your focus.

If you want to learn to infuse your work year-round with the same freshness and inspiration you feel after a good vacation, message me to learn about a new program I’ll soon be making available to a limited number of executives.

Next week, I’ll post about the second strategy for coming back strong after your vacation: Take advantage of the opportunity to see things with a fresh perspective.