Disconnect with a Mental Vacation Before Taking the Real Thing

Do you find it takes you a week to wind down when you finally get a break?

Well, with the time for taking holidays coming up, this seems like a good time to re-post a link to this Harvard Business Review  article by Carolyn O’Hara, which suggests mentally preparing yourself before you leave.

It’s all too easy to take work on holiday with you, whether it’s physically (I’ll just read through this stuff in the evenings and catch up a bit) or mentally – waking at 3a.m. wondering what to do about x or y or z. But if you do so, you’re simply transferring work to another location and losing the wonderful opportunity a holiday gives you to return refreshed and with as clear mind and a restored sense of perspective – Recreation is just that: re-creation!

I’m a great believer in practising new things mentally before actually undertaking them, so I see no reason why this wouldn’t work. I know there’s always a huge amount to be done before you can leave for a vacation but building in some ‘winding down’ time into your task list could pay dividends. She also has useful tips for really enjoying your holiday once you leave the office – and for easing yourself back into the flow.

Here are her headlines:
Practice with a mental “vacation” everyday
Plan ahead and define “emergency”
Empower your team
Give yourself permission to check in
Leave projects behind
Manage your re-entry
Savor your memories

Disconnect with a Mental Vacation Before Taking the Real Thing – https://hbr.org/2014/08/the-professionals-guide-to-a-stress-free-vacation/

And when your team members take a holiday, help them prepare and then ease them back in kindly and thoughtfully!