The summer vacation is (almost) over; many children are returning to school, and many adults are heading back to work.
For many, the countdown to the fall break has already begun. No less than 62% do not return to work feeling refreshed (according to our not-so-representative LinkedIn poll).
It feels like we're dragging ourselves from one vacation to the next. What does that say about our work, where we spend roughly 79,000 hours of our lives?
We work to live, not live to work.
That’s the message you get if you ask people on their deathbed. Their common regret is that they were too hard on themselves and didn’t pay enough attention to important relationships. Never on that list is the regret that they didn’t work hard enough. You could argue that hard work gives us more time with loved ones, but that simply doesn’t apply to everyone.
We need to dig a bit deeper.
Around this time, we’re bombarded with well-meaning tips on how to hold on to that vacation feeling. Here are three common examples:
💡 Think about which tasks you can delegate
💡 Prioritize, set boundaries, and say no
💡 Take extra breaks and do something fun to maintain the holiday feeling
The problem with these tips is that they ignore the real reason people crave vacations so much. In short? People often work in a culture that frustrates their basic psychological needs, especially autonomy.
These three tips assume you can delegate tasks, can set priorities, and can do something fun for yourself. But the reality is that in many organizations, we don’t have that freedom. And when you don't, these tips only add to the frustration. Before you know it, your hard-won vacation feeling is gone.
There is another way.
It’s far more important that we create a culture where people aren’t so suffocated that they barely make it to their vacation. And yes, that’s possible. And no, it’s not utopian or the end of productivity.
You can see culture most clearly by looking at how organizations solve problems. It forces you to ask, “What do we actually consider a problem here, and what don’t we?” This reveals a lot about the real values in an organization.
You can then examine how those “problems” are solved. This is where the most direct intervention lies. An example might help (after all, you may have just come back from vacation).
Imagine a colleague has children they need to drop off in the morning, so they occasionally arrive later than others. This is often met with a comment like, “Good afternoon” at 9:30 AM.
What do we consider a problem here? --> Arriving later than others.
How do we solve it? --> Publicly making a "joke" to let them know this isn’t acceptable.
This example involves a much more complex dynamic (I’ll skip the in-depth analysis), but it’s clear. For this colleague, this could feel like a violation of autonomy (they feel reluctant to arrive late) and connectedness (they are being excluded from the group).
When an employee ends up in a culture every day where their basic needs are frustrated, the chances of burnout increase, and vacations become more than a break—they become emotional survival.
The alternative is developing a healthy culture. Healthy, in this context, simply means "good for." It starts with leaders. They have the power—and hopefully the strength—to change things. It’s up to them, ideally with their team and external support, to identify where the culture is unhealthy.
Breaking an unhealthy culture is not easy and leaders can’t do it alone. Every change involves some loss. And everything in us screams to avoid loss. Leaders need a little inspiration here. Often, it’s not unwillingness but inability to see an alternative. We need new visions of how things could be. And there’s no better time to seek that inspiration than now! Because now, more than ever, this dilemma is playing out in most organizations.
And what about you?
Is there nothing you can do yourself? Of course there is. But even the best tips won’t help if you’re constantly swimming against the tide. So what can you do? Here are six well-researched tips that may not blow you away, but they’ll help you relax. Again, they help. Nothing more, nothing less.
💡 Move! Go for a walk in this lovely weather, ideally in nature...
💡 Sleep! Take your sleep seriously and ensure you get enough rest...
💡 Eat! Preferably balanced and healthy...
💡 Listen to music! Get lost in it or dance...
💡 Learn something new, something you’re genuinely interested in...
💡 Don’t do nothing! Spend time with people you enjoy being around...
And perhaps the most important... Don’t wait until the next vacation!
Incorporate these tips into your weekly routines. And on Monday, start a conversation with your colleagues about a healthy work environment. Your future self will thank you!
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