Create a Plan to Help You Ease Back to the Office !

Mon 16 Aug 2021

Create a Plan to Help You Ease Back to the Office !

Chances are your traditional day-to-day routine has been disrupted in the past year and a half. If you’re preparing to return to the office, how can you reestablish a routine?
(1) Start by picturing your workday from beginning to end, in as much detail as possible. When will you wake up? What and when will you eat? How will you commute? Write it all down — and then check your blind spots. Has the train schedule changed? Are the restaurants near your office still open? Don’t assume that anything is as you left it.
(2) Next, identify which parts of your pandemic routine won’t carry over easily into your reentry transition — Exercise? Chores? Childcare? — and think about how they’ll fit into your new schedule. Consolidate your plan in one place that’s easy for you to check.
(3) Finally, go through your list and consider any logistics you need to settle for each item, such as renewing your parking passes or gym memberships, finding childcare backup, or preparing meals in advance.
Things will be different when you start going back to the office. The better you prepare, the easier the transition will be.
This tip is adapted from “Preparing for Your First Day Back at the Office,” by Elizabeth Grace Saunders