How to cope with the back-to-work blues

Returning to work can quickly sap the energy out of you. Photo / File

The moment you open the office door and sigh in the stale air, you're hit with the realisation that the lazy days on the deck are over. It's the smell that really gets you. Like the rich musk of your deodorant-shunning mate, the aroma of the office air never changes. It's overbearing and it really has a knack of weighing you down.

There may be no known cure for the turgid smell of your office, but there are a few tricks to ensure that your first week back isn't the start of another 365-day Sisyphean nightmare.

Don't be ashamed of your procrastination

Look at the computer screens around you. Everyone's doing it. They're scrolling through social feeds, reading random news stories and setting up Spotify playlists.

There might be a few class pets around, but the rest of the workforce is living in a holiday-induced daze that feels like a weird mix of a hangover and jetlag. And these conditions create the ideal environment for the wandering mouse, that familiar creature with the uncanny habit of migrating kilometres across the internet without ever coming close to anything that resembles work.

Procrastination is inevitable on your first week back in the office. Photo / Getty Images

Embrace the procrastination while you can afford to do it. It won't be long before those pesky deadlines start encroaching on your online research time.

Keep your out-of-office on

The best way to avoid the annoying follow-up "did you see my email" phone call is to create the illusion that you're still on holiday. Let your "out-of-office" automatic reply linger for a few more days. Only the most extreme corporate masochists will dare to call you while you're on holiday. If the boss notices, simply apologise profusely and blame the holiday cobwebs.

Enjoy the cold start

Arriving at work on your first day, you might be keen to hit the ground running. This is easier said than done. A stockpile of work didn't suddenly manifest while you were away from the office. Avoid the desperate scroll through your email looking for things to do and instead, take this time to plan the coming weeks accordingly. Work your way into cruise control rather than trying to burnout from the starting line.

Check your calendar

You probably pushed out a few end-of-year meetings on account of being washed out at the end of 2019. Avoid the surprise notifications by checking your calendar on the first day and cancelling those that seem boring or irrelevant under the gaze of a rested set of eyes. Chances are that the people on the other side of the meeting will be thankful that you were the one to take the initiative.

Take those overdue client lunches

While there's nothing quite as good as a cancelled meeting, the first couple of weeks are a good time to take those important overdue meetings. You'll have a bit more time and you won't have to feel guilty about being out of the office for a bit too long.

The first couple of weeks are a good time to set up overdue client meetings. Photo / Getty Images

Lunch at your favourite café will also serve as a good digital detox after a morning of staring the computer screen.

Take a 'treat yourself' day

By the fortune of living in New Zealand, we have access to a pretty decent stack of holidays. Lessen the pain of your first week by taking the Friday off. This will allow you to ease into your first week. As an added bonus, you'll also get a taste of what it would be like to have a four-day week.

Start something

The quiet time of the holiday can breed creativity. If you've had a few lightbulbs spark up while lying on the beach, then see how you can bring these ideas to life. Make a start on this as early as you can. The longer you leave the light on, the dimmer it starts to look. Before long, an idea that seemed great might seem utterly dull. This might be true, but it could also just be a case of the drudgery of routine sapping your optimism.

Change something

There's nothing worse than the co-worker who complains about a process or a system but offers no alternative. If something annoyed you because of its inefficiency or irrationality last year, chances are that others agree with you. Come up with an alternative and find a way to improve it. Your co-workers will be eternally grateful that something was finally done.