If you're feeling anything like me, you're struggling with the transition back to work this year.

Just when you've eased into your holiday and finally let go of the attachment to work, it's time to go back! As small business owners, it's hard to let ourselves fall into a restful state and leave behind our responsibilities, and while it's so necessary to do this, the transition back to work can feel so overwhelming.

For me personally, I'm either in full-work mode or relaxation-mode (although a very uncommon occurrence). As soon as I've switched out of the work-mode, auto-pilot state I've been in for 11 months, getting back to it in January feels like a uphill battle (and I'm not that fond of climbing).

I've been sitting with this realisation lately and reflected on ways I can make this easier for myself in the future - to maintain that work life balance people talk about.

So in an attempt to help myself, and hopefully some fellow business gals, here's some helpful thoughts and reminders.

Take it slow & be kind to yourself

Yeah, yeah, we've all heard this before. If it sounds cliche, feels cliche and looks cliche - then it probably is. Except that doesn't matter. One way I have applied this to my transition back into work is by removing the expectation of completing a certain number of hours, and giving myself more time to complete tasks than I typically would. I've also ensured that I have small, achievable daily tasks that take the pressure off, as well as making me feel I've achieved something.

The first step is the hardest

For me, that first step was taking a look at all of the things on my to do list and organising this based on priorities. Anything that wasn't a high priority took a back seat for the first week. In fact, I'll tell you that I actually came back to work on a Tuesday, organised my to-do list and then decided to take two extra days off than originally planned. I felt at ease knowing I'd done the hard part.

do the fun things

With a new year comes new ideas and all of the excitement to do it - so tap into that and use this fresh energy to sit down and reflect on what you want for your business this year. I feel like this time is when your desires are the truest and most pure, they're coming after some time away from work, once you've processed last year and now have space to think about what's next. You can do this in whatever format suits you, whether it's through a vision board, a strictly formatted Google Doc or even just a yarn with a fellow business pal.

That leads me to my next point: catch up with some business friends. I think you'll find we are all feeling the same way at this time of year, and having someone there to see you and get you will take some of that overwhelm you're carrying, off of your shoulders. Whether you think this yarn is productive or not, it is. Heck. You don't even have to talk about business. Just enjoy being surrounded by like-minded souls who are on this crazy rollercoaster with you!

Keep those small joys in your life too - doing the gardening, morning walks, mindful moments, brunch with friends etc. Give yourself something to look forward to after work and don't feel guilty about ditching work for the day if the sun is shining and you get an invite to head to the beach!

establish a new routine

Ugh, sounds boring! I did a fair bit of reading over my break and one takeaway that has really stuck with me (and I implemented instantly) is to pair a desired habit with a pre-exisiting one (How to Do The Work by Nicole LePera). This is called "habit stacking" (also defined in Atomic Habits by James Clear). Pairing this with an established habit makes the new habit feel much more achievable and natural, and the concept is that over time you can slowly continue to add more and more.

For me, a black coffee first thing in the morning was the standard, except, this would involve me taking my coffee up to my desk and sipping on it while I worked. I actually hadn't realised that I was always waking up and just jumping straight into work mode, without taking any time to be present. A new routine kind of developed itself, ironically, while reading this book. My mornings now looked like sipping my coffee at our coffee table, with Sam and a book on my phone. No obligation to be anywhere, and allowing myself the space to basically just exist, for a little while, before doing anything else.

This routine became natural quickly and so with the transition to work, and following A LOT of reflections about my inability to give up control and rest - I decided I wanted to add another new habit to my daily routine. Journalling. Now I'm not going to act like I'm such an inspiration - because apparently it takes an average of 2 months before something becomes a habit; so maybe check back in then? No, but seriously. I can see how this flow-on effect really works.

Anyway, my point with this was actually to remind you that a routine doesn't have to feel rigid and confined, and therefore intimidating and unachievable, instead make it a ritual. Start small. Start with yourself first. Then everything else will fall into place.

plan future leave

One thing I quickly realised, 'say about week 2 of my leave, was that three weeks just wasn't going to be enough. This actually made me jump into my 2026 calendar in my phone and schedule longer leave for next year. I didn't want to set myself up for failure by letting future me make excuses for why she couldn't take off that extra time. I set a boundary super early. Whilst the summer break feels like an obvious rest period, girl, don't forget you're self employed and can actually do whatever the f*ck you want. Plan little holidays throughout the year and give yourself something to look forward to, AND of course, make sure this time is long enough for you to exit work mode and be fully present. I feel like I'm just talking to myself here!

Some other little things i've implemented this year

BRB, setting a reminder on my phone to come back and read this in 3 months. Beyond what I've already touched on above, there's a few other things I've incorporated:

• Affirmations around work and releasing the pressure off of myself - this is currently in the form of iPhone wallpapers
• Specified finish time regardless of hours completed - this is to help stop me from over working and over-stepping a new boundary I've set
• Stopped doom scrolling - intentional social media time only, and no phone's in bed. This has forced me to find new ways to "relax"

I'll leave you with some affirmations I've created for myself, which might help you too:

"I am proud of what I accomplished today, and I release the need to do more."

"Taking care of my personal needs fuels my creativity and productivity."

"I am more than my work, and I honour all parts of my life today."

"I trust the universe and know it will provide me with great things."



I hope this helped in some way to relieve some of the pressure you have placed on yourself so early in this year.

I see you!

Shan x