Keep calm and get back to work

Coming back from the holidays is difficult for most of us. It’s suddenly September and there we are in the office turning the pages of our diary like a book, trying to find where we left off. And yet there are a thousand and one things that we want to do and have to do! How can we cope successfully with the “back to work” syndrome? We asked someone who knows about being successful: Roberto Re, the Italian guru of coaching and training. For 20 years Re has advised businessmen, artists and athletes of international fame including Jessica Rossi, gold medallist at the 2012 Olympics in London, Lorenzo Bernardi and Roberto Mancini.

“The real beginning of the year is when you come back from your summer holidays”, explains Roberto, “so when you’re back in the city it’s fundamental to take a moment for yourself and plan your future objectives. It’s something we do at work but stupidly we don’t apply it to our private lives”.

So here’s some useful advice from Roberto Re about the best way to cope with the return.

1. Take half a day for planning.  This is definitely the most important thing. We must take stock of the season that’s just finished: understand what went well and what didn’t go as we wanted, so we can learn from each experience. Then we must visualise our objectives and set times and deadlines.

2.  Avoid the “new year” effect. There’s no point in making 1000 resolutions that we’ll forget just a few days later. It’s better to give yourself some priorities: go a step at a time, making continuous checks.

3. Channel the good energy from the holidays. It’s important to maintain the healthy habits you re-discovered on holiday. For example, continue to practice sports, read or find time for friends and affections.

4. Concentrate on the things that make a difference.  For all of us, 20% of our activities produce 80% of the results and that 20% is 1000 times more important than all the rest. This is what we have to invest in.

5. Don’t forget that “well begun is half done”.  It’s a good thing to begin by planning the first month and then make a first check in October to see what point you’ve reached.

So no stress, let’s take a couple of deep breaths, save our energy, visualise our objectives and by working a step at a time we’ll be able to make our next season a truly successful one.