Congratulations, You’re on Vacation. Now Stop Working.

What No One Tells You — #5 Congratulations, You're on Vacation. Now Stop Working. YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5K9aYlesOY4 —————————————————————————————————————————————————— Hey everyone, welcome back to What No One Tells You podcast. I'm Claudia. Quick note, at the end of last episode, I said that we will talk about what happens when you come back from holidays and nothing got done. But I changed my mind. And you know what? One of the most liberating things my manager ever taught me was that it's okay to change your mind. not flip-flopping, not being indecisive. But when the contest shifts, when you realize something else matters more right now, you're allowed to adjust. As a manager, I used to think changing my mind made me look weak or inconsistent, like I didn't know what I was doing. But changing your mind when you have new information is actually good leadership. Staying stuck in a plan that doesn't make sense anymore, that's ego. So, I'm changing the plan because right now, a week before the holidays, what you need isn't a lecture about January problems. What you need is to hear that it's okay to actually rest. The next few episodes are special holiday editions. And today, we're tackling something managers are terrible at disconnecting. Not just taking time off, actually letting go. turning off your brain, resetting because I know what's happening. You're exhausted and you're planning time off, but you're already thinking about checking emails, staying available just in case, making sure nothing falls apart. And by January, you'll be just as burned out as you are now. So, let's talk about why you cannot disconnect and how to actually do it. Here's what's stopping you from actually resting. The guilt. If I'm not available, who's going to handle things? The fear. What if I come back to a disaster? The identity crisis. Work is where you get your sense of purpose. Without it, you feel lost. So, you stay halfconnected and by January, you're still burned out. All right. So, here is your plan. One, tell people you're disconnecting. Don't ask. Don't say, "I will try to unplug or I will be mostly offline." Try to say instead, "I'm completely offline December 23rd to January 2nd. For urgent issues, contact person X and everything else waits." You're not asking for permission. You're stating what's happening. Two, turn off notifications. All of them. Not on silent and not on I'll just check once a day. Off. Delete work email from your phone if you have to log out. Remove the temptation because every time you check in, you're telling your brain you're still working and you cannot rest if you're still on duty. Three, physically separate yourself from work. If you work from home, close the office door, cover your laptop, put your work phone in a drawer. Out of sight, out of mind actually works. Your brain needs visual cues that work is done, not just for today, for the whole week. Four, schedule rest like you schedule meetings. You wouldn't skip a meeting with your boss. Don't skip rest. Block time. Put it in your calendar if you have to. 10:00 a.m. read. 2 p.m. walk. 700 p.m. do nothing. Because if you don't actively plan to rest, you'll accidentally fill the time with work. Five, do something that's not work. Get your brain something else to focus on. Spend time with people. Read. cook, walk, or watch a series, something that reminds you that you exist outside your job. Six, notice when you reach for work, then don't. During your time off, you're going to feel the urge to check email, to think about that project, to solve that problem. Try to notice it. Oh, there's the work anxiety again. Then consciously choose not to engage with it. The urge will pass and you'll get better at letting it go. But what if you genuinely cannot disconnect completely? Now, some of you are listening to this thinking, "That's great advice, but I'm a GM. I run a plant. I have operational responsibility. I just can't turn everything off." And you're right. If you're in a role where genuinely emergencies could happen, a production stops, a safety issue, a critical client situation, you cannot completely disconnect. But here's the thing. You can still set boundaries. They just look different. Try to define what's actually an emergency. Not someone has a question and not a client wants something. An emergency production line down or safety accident or something that generally cannot wait until you're back. And write it down. Tell your team, I'm only available for these specific situations. Everything else goes to person X or waits. Set specific checking times. Don't stay constantly available. Say that you will check messages once a day, for example, at 6 p.m. If it's a true emergency before then, call me. If I don't answer, it means I'm unavailable and you need to handle it or escalate to the backup person. You're still available, but on your terms, not on constant standby. Actually, use your backup. You have a second in command for a reason. Let them lead. Yes, they might make different decisions than you would. That's okay. If you never let them make decisions while you're gone, they'll never develop the judgment to handle things when it really matters. You might not be able to turn everything off, but you can still rest. Shorter work days, no evening emails, mornings off, wherever you can carve out. Some rest is better than no rest. And it's definitely better than pretending you're on vacation while actually working full-time from your couch. You're used to being the person who handles everything, who's always available, who keeps it running. But you're also human, and humans need rest. So this holiday season, actually take a break, a real one. And if you can't take a complete break because of your role, then take the biggest break you can. Define your boundaries. Protect your time and rest when you can. Your team will be fine. The work will be there and you'll handle it better when you're rested. All right. Here's your homework for the holidays. And yes, I'm giving you homework during your break, but the fun kind. Read something that's not a business book. Put down the leadership manual. Pick up fiction, a thriller, a memoir, something that has nothing to do with productivity or management frameworks. Your brain needs a break from optimizing everything. Or if you absolutely must read something about work, read about burnout, not how to be more productive, how to actually recover. Look up for topics like rest as resistance or doing nothing or the cult of busy. Read about why rest matters, not just as a tool to work harder later, but as valuable in itself. And try doing nothing for 20 minutes. No phone, no TV, no book. Just sit. Look out a window. Let your mind wander. It's going to feel uncomfortable. You're going to want to grab your phone, but don't. Just be. Your brain will thank you. And notice when you reach for work. During your time off, pay attention to when you feel the urge to check email or think about work problems. Don't judge it, just notice it. Oh, there is again this work of anxiety because once you start noticing the pattern, you can start changing it. All right, that's it for today. Next week is our second holiday special and I want to hear from you. What do you want me to talk about? What's the thing you're struggling with right now as a manager that nobody's addressing? Drop me a message. Tell me what you need to hear. Until then, turn off those notifications. Read something fun. Try doing nothing and actually disconnect. You've earned it. Now you know because I told you. My name is Claudia Slujito and this was number five episode of What No One Tells You podcast. See you next time.