How to prepare yourself for a return to the office

It’s time to come back to reality and figure out ways to get back to work after your vacation. Coach Carina Granö-Träskelin gives you 4 helpful tips to think of before returning to work.

1. A slow start. The same way as we slowly scale down our working before heading out for our vacation you also need to slowly level up to come in the right mood for work. If you have the opportunity to plan your own workdays, think about not putting the most demanding meeting or a crucial deal on the first week after your vacation. Otherwise there is a big risk that you won’t be able to relax during your vacation when you are thinking about a fully booked calendar is waiting for you. 

2. Everything will not be back to normal. Going back to work means for many of us, going back to our physical workplace after working at the home office for many months. This requires everyone in the team to be respectful and let everyone take their own time. Is it possible to let everyone get used to being back at work and maybe split up the days at the office?

3. Communicate with each other. This fall will show us the real impacts of the corona pandemic. As the situation looks right now, more lay-offs and redundancies are to come. At the same time everything is very unstable. This puts a lot of pressure on team leaders and their members. There is a lot of questions but not necessarily any answers.  If you as a leader feel very insecure and don’t have all the answers, say it out loud instead of just being quiet and ponder about it on your own. Silence can lead to unnecessary speculations and suspicions.

4. Take care of your staff. This goes hand in hand with the previous point. Ask your staff and your colleagues how they are doing. Listen carefully to their answers. This concerns the whole personnel because we can surely expect a difficult fall, both mentally and economically. If a lot of people needs to quit their work in your company you, as a employer, need to take care of your staff. This concerns those who must leave their work but also those who remain. Some may feel guilty about the fact that they will keep their job while other will have to quit.