Tomorrow I leave for a much-needed vacation with my family. We’ve got all the usual vacation things done… the kids are packed, pet-care lined up, mail on hold, plane tickets… but today I’ve been focused on getting things ready for my absence at work.
Here are the five things I’m doing today to make sure that when I leave tomorrow, I won’t be thinking about work:
Finish up what you can.
There are a hundred little things on to-do lists scattered across my desk. I’m convinced that I will enjoy the beach more if those things aren’t hanging over my head… waiting to pounce on me when I get back to the office.
I’ve done one of four things with every item on those lists:
- Finished them. Some of them were so simple, it was just a matter of making a phone call or sending a quick email to wrap them up.
- Delegated them. Many of these items were just waiting for me to pass them along to the right member of my team. I’ve simplified my delegation process by focusing on the expected outcome, rather than trying to communicate all the expected steps. I work with smart people. They can figure it out.
- Scheduled them. Some of these items require more time and focus than I have today. I’ve moved these emails to appropriately-lengthed blocks of time in my calendar for after I return. This way, I know I have a plan for getting these things done. If other people are involved, I’ve included them in the appointment to be sure they are ready to move forward on these items when I get back.
- Crossed them off. There are a few things on the lists that were either already done or no longer need doing. Simple. Cross them off. That feels better.
Clear out the inbox.
This is one of those things that needs done periodically anyway. Here’s my method for pre-vacation inbox vacating:
- Sort by items that are flagged for follow up. I address these items first. Again, some of them are easy to finish up and file. A few of them got scheduled for after I return (see #3 above). When I’ve scheduled them, I also sent a quick follow-up email to the sender to indicate my new timeline. All of these messages got some kind of response and completed, scheduled or filed.
- Sort by sender. There are literally hundreds of emails in my inbox that are just junk, spam, or purely informational. Usually, when i sort by sender, I can see these easily and move them in large chunks to the appropriate folder… or delete them. Sorry.
- Sort by date. Anything that’s left is likely not super important (because it wasn’t flagged) or can be addressed very quickly. Every email gets filed, deleted, or replied to. I spend no more than 30 seconds per email. If it’s going to take longer than that, schedule it for after you return.
Empower your team.
Since I’m going to be gone for several days, I want the members of my team to be able to follow up, finish up, and otherwise move forward without having to contact me. I’ve given each person permission to do just that… most of them know how I would respond anyway. I have set a limit, however, for them. They know if a decision exceeds that limit, they should check with another member of the team, or my supervisor… who is empowered to make those decisions for me.
Communicate appropriately.
I’m planning to turn off all notifications on my phone and ipad for work email accounts. It’s really the only way I’ll enjoy my vacation. In order to do that, I’ve created auto-responders for both internal and external emails that direct people to other members of my team if their need can’t wait until I return.
It’s also important to set an outgoing voicemail message that indicates when you’ll return and who to reach in the meantime. I’ve also done this on my cell phone voicemail, and set a do-not-disturb rule so that calls from work will go directly to voicemail and only calls from friends and family will go through.
Take a deep breath.
At the end of the day, I can only get so much done. I’ll take a deep breath, log out, and head home. After all, everything’s still going to be there when I get back.