There is no better feeling than leaving work on a sunny afternoon, kicking off the long weekend, heading for a date with a dock, a BBQ and a cold one. However, there is something about coming into work the following week with the predictable s*#! storm of problems that makes long weekends feel so much less enjoyable.
Here are our tips to get ahead and avoid the Tuesday morning issues:
TO DO LIST
The easiest, sure fire way to make sure you aren't missing anything – WRITE IT DOWN and CROSS IT OFF! Yes, using a pen and paper because OMG it's so much more satisfying.
Write down every single thing you need to do, even the simplest tasks like "reply to Janice's email". You are much less likely to forget or let things get lost in your inbox if you follow this system which leads to way less issues on Tuesday morning when you return.
WORK AHEAD
Don't stop your to-do list on Friday, look ahead and see what you can accomplish for next week before you leave to enjoy your long weekend.
Prep for your meetings, print off any documents you need, sign reports, get ahead on some leads. Tuesday then becomes about replying to people in response to you and less about first contacts and damage control.
FOLLOW UP
Those little emails you've been avoiding, the voicemails you haven't tended to, the creative team that hasn't finished the assignment you need by Tuesday – handle it now. Make Thursday and Friday your damage control/follow up days. Anything you foresee being an issue or concern on Tuesday morning should get handled the week before.
For the love of Christmas, do not make things a "Tuesday Problem"
PUT YOUR TIME IN
Long weekends usually lead to a more lax office – longer lunches, treats in the break room, leaving early. Put your time in and stay focused, you will thank yourself Tuesday morning when you’re strolling into the office worry free and your coworkers are putting out fires.
LEAVE ON A GOOD NOTE
Any clients your dealing with, even the ones that aren't happy with you, leave them a nice message to end those emails or voicemails. Make them feel good about heading in to a few days off. Be positive, cheery and let them know that you're thinking about them.
Most importantly, enjoy the f out of your time off no matter what you're doing. Put work aside and actually give yourself a mental break because you deserve the reset 🙂
Cheers!