How To Get Back To Work After A Long Holiday?

Imagine this.

It is 6.30 a.m in the Monday morning. Chicago airport.

You just got off a 12 hours flight returning from a two weeks holiday in Thailand. Your head was still a little disoriented from the jet lag and of course, the hangovers.

You finally got your car. The engine made a few low-frequency humps died. Let’s try it again. This time it sounded like an old man’s cough and went into a coma. The engine died because you left your car idle when you were away.

For some of us, that grumpy car is as if your momentum after a long year-end holiday. 

Getting back to work after a long holiday can be quite a task. 

Show up earlier

If you want to be a billionaire, think like a billionaire;  if you want to be a marathon runner, don’t wear heels to the race.

During my high school break, I got a job as a telemarketer. I sold stuff to the strangers over the phone. I was a high school kid, but my manager wanted me to wear shirt and tie. I had to buy a new tie.

He said, “dress like a boss and you will be a boss.” You are your thoughts. Use our body to break limiting beliefs in our mind and it works. When you move your body, you move your mind. One of the simplest ways to make our mind feels more positive is exercise.

Shave up, dress up, and put on your favorite cologne. Show up in the office an hour earlier and You will have won half the battle.

No. Don’t run into the email first.

Now, get a piece of paper and draw a stickman onto it. Then draw a blue circle around the stickman. Done?

Now, draw a bigger red circle around the circle you just did. Label the red circle “Oh no, wildfire zone!” and label the blue circle as “response zone”.A fireman never jumps into a wildfire without preparation. So, why would you? Oh, by the way, the stickman in the circles? You.

There is a difference between being responsive and reactive. If you are responding, you are in control; If you are reacting, you are being controlled by the external environment. 

So, before you blindly jump into your email and burn your most expensive dress into ashes –  spend the most productive hour to chart your priority for the day. You want to be in absolute control of your day. Once you are done, go ahead and click those emails.

Bite the biggest frog first

In the movie “Jack Reacher”, Tom Cruise said, “If you are surrounded by a gang and you have absolutely nowhere to run, target ONLY the boss.” Brian Tracy said, “doing works are like eating frogs.” Frog are ugly, hard to eat, But, you have to do it.

Always bite the biggest frog FIRST and Complete the hardest work as early as possible.  The sense of achievement and adrenaline will make you feel like a winner for the rest of the day.

Hang out with the happy colleague

Surround yourself with positivity. Positive people give you power; negative people sucks it away.

Train your mind. Refrain from speaking negativity and shield yourself from the office gossip and the negativity. Start the day with absolute happiness and positivity and you will get the momentum.

Also, you want to be the sun and not a black-hole.

Buy your boss a flower.

On your way back from lunch, pick up a flower for your boss. But, what if your boss hates flower? Then, bring her certainty. Do not surprise your boss. Bad surprises are troubles. Call for a team meeting and bring everyone on the same page and up to speed because there will be some backlogs after the holiday.

Lastly, you don’t need my tips. 

Tell me 3 words that come to your mind when I say “Going back to work”. Are those positive affirmation or negative ones?

How you feel, think, speak about your work is the mirror image of your relationship with it. Do you love it; hate it; got bored of it; or fear it? Do you know WHY are you feeling those emotions? A fulfilling work is something that serves our purpose, magnifies our values, and supports our long-term goal.

Without these three elements, the works are merely mechanical tasks.

“Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it.” Steve Job said.

Are you clear on why you work? are you happy? IF you need help to drag yourself back to work so badly, perhaps you should take a pause and look into the mirror and ask, “Why?” and do something about it. Don’t waste your life!

Happy working!

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