Do you dread going back to your fall work schedule? We understand and you’re not alone. Due to COVID-19, you may not have had a regular summer. And it seems like “regular” won’t be back for some time. Many of our clients are telling us they would love to get back to the office. Others are enjoying working from home but are having a hard time managing the distractions. Some tell us it’s hard to unplug and create a true work schedule. Most professionals will be working virtually until further notice. And with the kids going back to school, mostly virtually, this presents additional challenges for mid-career professionals who want to make a difference in their industries.
The truth is, no one should dread getting out of bed in the morning to go to work. While it’s normal to feel a little overwhelmed or tired as schedules change, you can thrive instead of just survive the transition. We understand these challenges and want to help you with three easy tips to transition to your fall work schedule more easily.
#1. Organize your calendar. Back to school also means having to plan around your kids’ schedules or your co-workers’ kids’ schedules! Whether they are virtually learning or not, there may be extracurricular activities they need to attend or assignments that they need help with. Take some time to sit down with everyone’s calendars. This will help you when planning your work meetings or other activities. While transitioning, we recommend keeping a detailed task list for work so that it’s easy for you to keep track of what you need to do the first few weeks.
#2. Don’t neglect your self-care. If your kids are back in school, that means you can finally get down to business and concentrate on your work projects without any interruptions! This can be a plus to feeling more productive, but this can also cause unnecessary burnout if you’re not careful. Make sure to include breaks in your daily schedule. Do simple things during your breaks, such as stretching, taking a short walk if possible around your property, or calling a co-worker.
#3. Set boundaries. New schedules call for new boundaries. You may find that as your schedule shifts in the fall that you can no longer schedule meetings at a certain time or work at certain times of the day. Once you are organized and have included some time for self-care, determine what boundaries you can set to maintain your work-life balance. For example, you may determine that a fall schedule will require you to spend more time with your household in the evenings or on the weekends, and therefore you won’t check your work email during those times. Make sure that the boundaries you set are reasonable for your household and for your industry and job description. Setting reasonable boundaries makes it easier to uphold them.
Do you need more help setting boundaries or achieving better work-life balance?
