Getting ready to get out of the office for the week on a well-deserved vacation? While you’re vacation planning, your busy brain can deter from fully relaxing and living in the moment while you’re contemplating those sandy beaches.
Sound familiar? If so, here is a list of four stress-free tips to help you make that seamless shift from workaholic to vacation virtuoso.
Maybe you abhor the very idea of a cluttered inbox, or have five separate planners you use to organize your entire life. “Many of us stress about doing extra work before leaving in hopes of cutting down on the amount you have when you come back,” says psychologist J. Kip Matthews, vice president of Athens, Georgia-based AK Counseling and Consulting, Inc. “But it seems like there’s always a lot of work when you get back … the prep only adds more stress.” So save the non-pressing items for when you return.
You might feel pressured to tell your boss that you’ll be checking in every day while you’re away. Pro tip: Don’t to it! Instead, it’s better to state casually that you’ll check in from time to time. “The more that we check our email and respond to phone calls, the more we’re training our colleagues and bosses we’re available 24/7,” says Matthews. “They don’t try to figure out alternative ways to get their needs met without you being there.”
Once you’ve set your vacation plans in motion and have informed the boss, try try practicing the technology cleanse to plan to stick to a couple days before you actually leave work. This is not to in attempt to disconnect from your responsibilities, but rather to avoid going into withdrawal from always being connected to your phone. Try turning your device off before you hit the hay, or taking an afternoon walk to train your brain to slow down into vacation mode.
So maybe a storm hits the day you planned to go sailing, or maybe your flight gets delayed for several hours. Listen, conundrums and minor catastrophes are bound to happen sometimes, but that doesn’t mean they have to ruin your trip! Be prepared for for flight delays, just in case, by bringing a book to read so at least you have something soothing to distract your mind while you wait.
“This is not just an extension of your work from a different location,” says Matthews. “The problem with feeling compelled to check email or voicemail is you’re never fully ‘away’, you’re not getting a mental vacation from work,” he says. You have to remember that you earned these hours off of the daily grind for a reason! Without them, you’re likely to burn out.
