5 Tips to Get Rid of Post-Vacation Stress

It has been 13 years at work but coming back from a vacation has never been easy. Over the years I’ve developed some countermeasures against post-vacation stress and they have proven to be useful. Here are my tips in case you need a motivational boost!

1. Give yourself extra time to prepare mind and body

If I’m coming back from a long distance, i.e. abroad, taking the latest possible flight made my next day even worse. In my last trips, especially if it’s a 2-week vacation, I’ve chosen to arrive in my hometown a few days earlier to take some time off or restart my hobbies. If it’s a short vacation, coming back a few hours earlier than usual will do the trick.

2. Keep your out-of-office message for at least half a day more

Or alternatively by turning on do-not-disturb mode for a few hours in order to improve focus has helped me tremendously for sorting out my inbox at the day of arrival. Turning off the notifications on the mobil devices is another tactic that worked very well for me.

3. Triage and start with a big win

As a person high in conscientiousness, my motivation goes up as I start ticking things off my to-do list which is also a huge dopamin hit. So I always start my first day after vacation with an important but easy-to-complete task (hello Eisenhower Matrix fans!). Also don’t forget that you’ll be more productive later so as not to go hard on yourself.

4. Socialize

Communicating with the team to remember where I’ve left off and learn about the highlights of the last weeks has also been a great trick to jump-start my brain into work mode. We are social beings, remember?

5. Plan your next trip

This one is so valuable that I should have charged you for it. We, the human species, love having something to look forward to. Whenever I thought about planning my next trip after coming back from one, these positive expectations greatly boosted my mood. You don’t have to make reservations, just the thought of it makes you happy. Highly recommended.

Bonus: If possible, work remotely the week after the vacation.

It may sound cliché but life is indeed a marathon not a sprint, I’ve been the most productive when I design my year with some quality vacations in between months of hard work. The important thing is to stay in the moment but also plan for the future.