Back at work? Here’s how to beat the post-holiday blues

“Excited to get back work after a long vacation!” said no employee ever.

True indeed! Getting back to work after a string of long holidays and resuming from where you left is what most employees dread the most.

Chunks of emails, piles of files and unfinished tasks can dash your hopes to resume work with full energy and excitement, no matter how hard you try. If you are experiencing something like this, then congratulations, you are officially going through - Post-holiday blues.

A day or two ago, I heard a similar story from Dipanshu, a web content writer in our marketing team at ProofHub. He was swimming in the same waters and was finding it hard to beat the post-holiday blues. Then, a few employees joined him and started sharing how they are also finding it difficult to get moving after long holidays.

"Looking for ways to beat the post-holiday blues and manage work? Try ProofHub."

I sat down with my team and had a discussion on how one can deal with this ubiquitous problem. Every single individual in our team gave inputs and we came up with a few tips that can help you get back to work with zing.

Don’t underestimate the power of a quick team-huddle

When employees return to work after holidays, they are often too casual about work. You see them chatting with colleagues about how exotic the location was, the fun activities they did, showing pictures to others and catching up on social media posts to check others.

To help employees to come back from sunbed to reality and get them in the ‘work-mood’, gather for a quick huddle for 10-15 minutes. In this huddle, you can catch up on where you left and what to look forward to the future. The goal is to set the stone the rolling and to direct the day productively - motivated and informed.

Set SMART new year goals

The beginning of the new year is the perfect time to introspect the previous year and act on the lessons learned from it. You may not be hundred percent charged up due to post-holiday blues but setting goals with your team members is a good way to get started. Setting goals and targets not only help us to stay motivated but provide a reason to work something for.

Don’t make the process too complex. Start simple and smart. Make sure the goals aren’t too overwhelming that they end up doing the opposite. Set goals that are specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and time-bound.

Give them something to look forward to

January might seem little depressing (just like Monday) as you’ve just joined work after back-to-back parties and celebrations. It can be tough for anyone to get back in the work mood. How about giving them a reason to look forward to join office that can possibly lift their spirits? This could be a team outing, afterwork drinks or some fun group activities at work.

The idea is to make the work environment light, playful and productive. When you as an organization focus on workplace happiness, employees don’t mind going an extra mile for you.

How about a desk makeover?

It’s a brand new year and thus the right time to add some newness in your cubicle as well. Give your workspace a complete makeover. They say that decluttering is empowering and liberating. It’s a physical way to make new decisions and start all over again. Adding a dash of fun and newness will positively impact your mind to get moving and start working.

Start with changing the wallpaper on your desktop to a motivational quote or an image that is nothing but inspiring. Replace old photos with the new ones. This way you are directing your brain to act and work.

Teamwork makes the team work

Most of the times, when employees return to work after the holidays, they face an increased workload. At times, pending work may overlap with the new work allocated to them that can make the whole process even more difficult. This is where you need to step in as a manager. You can review roles and responsibilities to remind them who needs to do what. If required, don’t hesitate to share the workload, you are a team after all.

Everyone in a team must understand their responsibilities, work in unison to complete the work, and be accountable for their work. We use ProofHub to manage work, assign tasks, communicate and collaborate with a team or clients to ensure the success of a campaign.

 Returning to work after holidays can feel like a bit of comedown for all of us. I’m sure Oprah Winfrey, Elon Musk, Barack Obama and other successful people, they all go through it. All you need is some boost in motivation to get back into the swing of things and work to your full potential.

How do you help employees to beat the post-work blues when they return to work? Let me know in the comments.

And from the bottom of my heart, I’d like to wish you all a very happy new year. Make it count!

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Vartika Kashyap runs the marketing team at ProofHub — a project management software for teams of all sizes. She is a seasoned marketing professional who is an expert in digital marketing and entrepreneurship. She’s been featured among LinkedIn’s Top Voices for the year 2016 & 2017. Connect with Vartika on LinkedIn, Medium and Twitter.

Also follow our company page @ProofHub to get the recent updates about our tool, published articles, motivational quotes & presentations.

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