The holidays are almost here, and with them comes that rare opportunity to step away from work and recharge. Whether you're taking a full week off or just a few days, making the most of your break means actually disconnecting—not just physically leaving the office while your mind stays tethered to unfinished projects and unanswered emails.
The good news? With a bit of preparation now, you can set yourself up for genuine relaxation and make your return to work in January much smoother.
Finish What You Can
There's a reason incomplete tasks keep nagging at you: our brains are wired to remember unfinished business. Psychologists have known for nearly a century that open loops in our work create mental tension that persists until we close them. During a vacation, that tension pulls your thoughts back to the office when you should be focused on loved ones and rest.
The solution is straightforward—wrap up as many projects as you can before leaving. If you can't complete something entirely, at least get it to a natural stopping point. You'll feel the difference when you're finally able to relax without work intruding on your thoughts.
And here's what not to do: don't launch any major new initiatives right before the break. Those will only loom over you during what should be downtime. Save the big stuff for January and concentrate on clearing your desk now.
Leave Yourself Breadcrumbs
Programmers learn early in their training to document their code as they write it. Without those notes explaining what each section does and why, coming back to that code later becomes a frustrating puzzle. Even the programmer who wrote it can't remember their own logic after enough time passes.
Your work projects aren't all that different. Right now, you know exactly why that meeting is scheduled, what decision was made about the marketing campaign, and where things stand with your biggest client. But after even a short break, those details start to blur.
Before you leave, spend time documenting your ongoing projects. Jot down the reasoning behind key decisions. Add context to your calendar entries for those early January meetings. Note the current status of everything in progress and what needs to happen next.
Yes, it takes extra time upfront, especially if you're not in the habit of leaving yourself notes. But you'll be grateful when you return refreshed and can immediately understand where you left off, rather than spending your first days back trying to reconstruct everything from memory.
Talk to Your Team
Want to really relax? Check in with everyone you're working with before you go. Since you don't control every aspect of every project, you need to know what's happening on other fronts.
Use these conversations to uncover any brewing problems you should address before leaving. Get ahead of any last-minute requests so you're not scrambling as you try to start your vacation. There's nothing worse than feeling pressured to rush through important work on your way out the door.
If you manage others, take a moment to give them explicit permission to disconnect. Some team members may worry that working through the holidays will impress you or keep them in good standing. Everyone needs real downtime. When you directly tell your team that the best thing they can do is rest and recharge, you remove that pressure and help ensure they return ready to perform at their best.
Set Up Your Safety Net
Do yourself a favor: don't check email during your break. It's tempting to take a quick peek, but that peek rarely stays quick. Before you know it, you've spent hours of your vacation dealing with work issues that could have waited.
Set up an out-of-office message instead. Let people know you're away and when you'll be back. Once others know you won't respond until the new year, the pressure is off—for them and for you.
Of course, if you work in a field where genuine emergencies can occur, make sure critical contacts know how to reach you if something truly urgent arises. But for everything else, create boundaries that let you fully step away.
The Gift of Real Rest
These preparations aren't just about making your return to work easier—though they'll definitely do that. They're about giving yourself the gift of genuine rest and presence with the people who matter most. When you know your work is in good order and your team has what they need, you can actually enjoy your time off.
You've earned this break. Make it count.