Enjoy Thanksgiving! Leave the Stress of Work at Work
The holiday season is in full swing and while it’s supposed to be a celebration of joy, peace and what we are thankful for, it is typically the opposite. There are many reasons for this. It’s likely you have year-end reports, team meetings and mandatory office holiday parties. Prepping for the holidays takes a huge amount of energy but just as you are about leave your office cubicle for the long holiday weekend, take a deep breath and be prepared to leave the stress of work at work. Enjoy your time with friends and make the most of your time with loved-ones. Your job (and the stress that comes with it) can wait. I know it’s easier said than done but try some of these techniques so you can have a more enjoyable holiday away from the office:
At the office:
When at the office, set clear and reasonable goals for what you want to accomplish and commit to a hard stop time. Use your motivation for getting out the door on time as a way to fight off those tempting distractions.
On your way home:
Take deep cleansing breaths. Treat your commute home as a positive time to wind down and start the process of relaxation. Play some favorite music or listen to a book. Enjoy the drive or the train journey. You might as well, since you have to do it, enjoyable or not.
When you step in the front door:
When you get home pay full attention to whoever’s waiting for you. Never be present physically and mentally elsewhere—it’s an insult. Make eye contact, listen intently to your kid’s stories of video games, your spouse’s concerns about the furnace or about grandpa’s war stories (that you’ve heard a thousand times before).
At Home:
Step away from the smart phone. It will actually help you enjoy your holidays more. Don’t be tempted to look at email – turn off the notifications, reading your work email will only anger you or add to your workload stress.
Using a few techniques like this can help you to be the kind of person your family will be glad to see—the kind of person who spends an enjoyable long weekend with them, and is ready to go back to the office to do a good day’s work when the holiday weekend is over. Yes, the holidays are stressful and it always creeps up on you at the worst times imaginable but it’s an important time to balance your work life and home life. Work will always be there, enjoy time away from the office. Appreciate life!
