Have you ever had days where your phone won’t stop ringing and the emails won’t stop pouring in? The good news is that you aren’t alone. Sometimes it can seem as though the only way to escape the non-stop communication is to switch your devices off and completely disconnect. This doesn’t have to be wishful thinking as January and February are the perfect time of the year to disconnect and take a break.
If you’re accustomed to working around the clock and aren’t used to downtime, you may struggle to put the work emails and projects aside and focus on enjoying your vacation. It also doesn’t help that technology has made work and life so interconnected. In a world where there’s a blurred line between your work space and personal space, how do you separate the two? Here are a few suggestions regarding how you can unplug post holidays and beyond.
Finish Work Before Taking Time Off
When the December Global Holidays season starts creeping around, you may start to get mass amounts of work coming in. On the other hand, you may have a backlog of work you haven’t gotten around to that needs to be completed. To effectively unplug, try and organize your workload and set targets to finish before vacation. This is a way of ensuring that work doesn’t end up coming on vacation with you.
To organize your workload, start by creating a to-do-list. You can then structure your workload and prioritize time-consuming tasks. Don’t forget to set stringent deadlines for each task on your list to help create a sense of urgency.
If you know that your workload is impossible, see if it can be extended until after your vacation. In the event that it can’t, ask your manager if you can outsource some of it to less busy colleagues or a freelancer.
Before leaving the office and going on vacation, consider putting an out-of-office message in place. This way, people who contact you will be informed about your absence and know who to email in the interim. However, try to avoid revealing too much when composing your message as it could make you and your company vulnerable to cyber criminals. This means leaving out information such as direct and personal numbers, addresses, or exact dates of absence.
Consider Traveling
Sometimes, the only way to unplug is to actually pack your bags and leave. Leaving the country could help you make the most of your vacation time as you’ll be far away from home It also gives you time to rejuvenate and relax as you won’t be surrounded by your usual responsibilities and distractions.
Think about visiting somewhere like Italy as it’s culturally rich and they have more than enough activities to keep you busy. Seeing as Italians value relaxation and family time, this might just be the kind of trip you need. You can expect to do a lot of walking and indulge in nutritious Italian food while you’re there. Don’t forget to sample some wine there as well. Not only does wine boast myriad health benefits, but it also has a variety of uses that goes beyond a tasteful evening beverage. If you happen to be a vegan or have a very specific diet, do research to see which restaurants or hotels provide the kind of food you need.
Aside from going to Italy, Pakistan is another interesting destination that should keep your mind off work. It’s a hospitable country with affordable accommodation and a rich culture you can explore. Traveling out of the country creates an opportunity for you to make sacred memories, which is just as important as working. Don’t forget to take pictures and videos if you have a smartphone so you have something to look back at and smile about in the future.
Manage a Healthy Diet While on Vacation
If you want to go back to work feeling refreshed, why not try switching up your diet? As tempting as it may be to indulge in all of your guilty pleasures during your vacation, it isn’t the healthiest option. It could result in you putting on unwanted weight and feeling less energized when it’s time to return to work. Weight gain has been associated with excessive daytime sleepiness and that isn’t something you want to experience.
To avoid this, be conscious of what you’re eating during your time off. This doesn’t necessarily mean denying yourself every new cuisine, but rather, finding a healthy balance. If you do end up putting on weight, don’t worry too much about it as there are ways to get the weight off. For instance, you could detox to clear out your system and make weight loss easier. Also, you could commit to being more physically active to maintain a healthy weight.
Lay Ground Rules
Setting ground rules when you’re on vacation is another way to unplug. Such rules could prevent you from being sucked back into work at any given time. An example of a ground-rule could be not having your phone on at all during certain periods of the day. This helps you establish healthy boundaries between work and home as well as be more present in the moment.
Another ground rule could be only checking your email once a day. To take it a step further, consider setting up a vacation email address that you can use while you’re away. This way, you won’t receive your normal influx of work-related emails and you’ll only hear from the selected few you share it with. To make sure you still have access to important emails, have key messages, like from the CEO or the person you handed work over to, forwarded to you from your work email account. If any urgent messages do come through, don’t forget to reply with your vacation email address.
Unplugging from work isn’t an easy thing to do, especially when the majority of your days are spent at work. However, by learning to unplug, you’re teaching yourself work-life balance. Not only does this mean you have time to rest, but it can make work more enjoyable when it’s finally time to get back to it.