You, in bed, the last night before your first day at work after the holidays.
As you probably already know, coming back to work after you’ve been on vacation sucks. It sucks harder than accidentally pooping when you only meant to let out a small fart. You spent the last 2-3 weeks sleeping in late and doing whatever you wanted but now you’re back to the 9 – 5 life and tbh, you’re not sure if you can deal with the change in routine. Don’t worry. You’re not alone.
Here is a guide for surviving your first day back after the Christmas holidays:
Embrace the sadness like an old friend
Fight it, dread it, run from it, the sadness arrives all the same so the best you can do is deal with it. The first step to doing that is accepting that the next few days (which will involve settling back into your old routine) will be difficult. Dealing with the sadness in a healthy manner will ensure that it doesn’t negatively affect your work.
Wear clothes you like and are comfortable in.
Please take note that I’m not advising you to wear sweatpants and a hoodie to your job at the bank. You will get fired/escorted out of the building by security, and I don’t think starring in an infamous viral video is how you want to start your 2019.
Dress as comfortable as you can without violating your office’s dress code. Because on a day where you’re most likely to be irritable, the last thing you’ll want is to be trapped in a pair of jeans two sizes too small.
Get to the office earlier than usual.
It helps in avoiding the anxiety that comes with commuting (will be late?!). Even better, you’ll get some quiet alone time to do things like arrange your workspace, make your coffee, or scream in frustration because you hate the direction your life is going in.
If a colleague comes up to you and says “Good to be back, eh?”, punch them in the throat.
How dare they rub their ability to be energetic and optimistic in your face?!
Prioritize your tasks.
Chances are you’ll have a lot of work to catch up on your first day back. To avoid feeling overwhelmed, spend the first few hours of the morning sorting your tasks so you can quickly get the urgent ones done and out of the way. The key is to throw in a few tasks you like (e.g. sexting) in order to make the whole process enjoyable.
Have snacks stashed away in your bag/drawer you can chew from time to time.
Because, and I can’t stress this enough, food = happiness. #WiseWordsToLiveBy
Make plans to have lunch outside the office.
For the first few days after returning, a change of scenery is necessary to avoid feeling like you’re trapped in a box. Your lunch break is the best time to achieve that.
Sit at your desk and cry quietly about the fact that there isn’t another major holiday for months.
An important part of the whole process. During this time, your inner monologue will look a little something like this:
“Everyday all I do is ‘wake up and go get this bread’. I am sick and tired. Why can’t the bread come get me for once, ehn?! %@$%$#!”
Set new professional goals.
Setting goals keeps you from getting bored at work because then you’re returning with a new mindset: to crush your goals (whatever it maybe be) within the time period you’ve set for yourself.
Catch up with your coworkers.
Stop at the desks of some of your co-workers and catch up. Gist small and fill each other in on all of the hottest tea (gossip). It’ll do wonders for your mood.
