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Easing Back into Work
For anyone returning to work after a break, a leave, a vacation or a long stretch away. Each day is one small step that makes the return steadier, so you can settle back in without trying to catch up on everything at once.
Work · Work · Life Transitions · Stress · one to-do a day · you choose how many days
The first seven days
- Day 1Tonight, lay out the clothes you plan to wear to work tomorrow, down to the shoes and socks.
- Day 2Pack your work bag this evening and set it by the door so the morning holds one less decision.
- Day 3Write tomorrow's start time and first task on a sticky note and leave it where you will see it at breakfast.
- Day 4Set two alarms for tomorrow morning, the second one ten minutes after the first, so waking up feels less like a scramble.
- Day 5Give yourself fifteen extra minutes this morning by moving your wake-up time a little earlier than you strictly need.
- Day 6Eat a real breakfast before you start work today, even if it is just toast and a piece of fruit.
- Day 7Open your inbox for twenty minutes only, sort the newest messages, then close it and do something else.
Further into the year
The to-dos keep changing as the year goes on. A few from later in this theme:
- Day 30Write a brief out-of-office reply for the next few days that says you are back and catching up gradually.
- Day 60Read through your job description or goals from before the break to remember what your role covers.
- Day 120Write one sentence about what you hope this month back at work will feel like.
- Day 240Clean up your contact list by adding new coworkers and removing people who have left.
- Day 365Thinking back over this challenge so far, choose the three to-dos you want to keep as habits.
How a challenge works
A Theraglee challenge is a theme with one small to-do for every day of a year. You choose how long yours runs, anywhere from a week to the full year, and each day you get the next to-do: something that takes a few minutes and fits inside an ordinary day. Tick it off when it is done. Nothing is scored and nothing is lost if you miss a day; the next to-do is simply waiting when you come back.
Challenges come with a free Theraglee account, which never asks for a card. Your progress stays private to you.