Holiday Prep
I’m a day late this week. I’m in the pre-holiday sprint finish that lasts a few weeks.
I’ve known it’s coming, I’m quite energised by it.
Travel Sunday to Tuesday (missed the Irish Bank Holiday — poor me), clients all day Wednesday, Thursday morning full too, plus the usual busy family schedule. I simply forgot, despite getting the reminder from Amy.
And here we are, Friday morning. Two more weeks to go before I down tools.
The delay, and my excuses/reasons for it, gave me something to think about.
I’ve had a few coaching conversations recently that landed on the same topic: holidays. It comes up in the TRIPS Tank Coaching Community each year around this time too.
Resting, recharging, replenishing. But they don’t always end up that way, do they?
One particular client, fairly new in his Partner role, described a familiar frustration.
While away on holiday, he found himself checking emails between 5-6pm each evening.
Not because anything urgent was happening.
Not because anyone asked him to.
But because it made him feel better.
Once he cleared the inbox, he felt he could relax for the evening.
Yet, when being honest with himself, he knew it was unnecessary. So that ruined the relaxation part – “Why do I feel the need to check?” he asked himself.
He does the same thing at home in the evening between 5.30-7.30pm when he’s with his partner and child. Sneaks a peak…realises what he’s doing…frustrated again.
We worked through it together.
I shared a technique to help him mentally rehearse and then practice a different, more intentional response in those moments — replacing the triggered habit with something more aligned to how he wants to show up.
Each temptation then becomes the opportunity to do the work.
After that, we explored the piece he hadn’t really thought about: the preparation before the holiday.
There hadn’t been much.
- No boundaries set with colleagues.
- No clear ‘only call me if it’s urgent’ plan with his PA.
- No systems in place to give him confidence that he could fully switch off.
This is where he saw the real opportunity.
As for me? The next two weeks are stacked.
- House stuff.
- Kids’ activities including Mini World Cups, dance shows, solo singing performances.
- 7 days of full client delivery out of 10.
- The remaining 3 days are packed with prep with colleagues.
Then comes the holiday. Followed by some remote working through the summer.
So I’ve been thinking about my own preparation.
Not just the work front. But how I want to show up while away.
I want to be present. Relaxed. With enough space to be free to think, read, write, play, and be spontaneous in whatever way I choose.
And when inevitable challenges come up…tired kids, lost keys, bad sleep, minor injuries…I want to respond with a bit more grace than I have in the past.
Previously, I’ve snapped at the kids for being ‘spoiled and ungrateful’ on a holiday. They were just exhausted — and so was I.
This time I’m preparing differently. A few likely triggers. A few intentions for how I’ll respond.
Prepared not just to do the holiday, but to be on the holiday.
How about you? How will you prepare?
- At work?
- At home?
- In your own head?
See you next week. On time, hopefully.