Leaving the Work Day Behind

We’ve all been there. The day is coming to a heated close, and you notice the number of outstanding tasks that still exist while you recall the day’s events. Not getting as much work done as possible, remembering the current state of work events, and ultimately wondering what lies around the corner for the following day.

This is a common anxiety we all face in the fast-paced tech industry, where deadlines are tight and deliverables were needed yesterday. It’s the prevalent feeling of having to leave things unfinished. What’s been left undone still looms as the day ends, and your mind is akin to an oven cooling off after being heated all day. This process, naturally, takes some time. Your body and mind must get along to make this transition occur. We are meant to feel that we constantly need to be in this “work mode”, where we chug some caffeine, get ourselves hyped up, and prepare for the endless possibilities that come with being productive. However, I’d propose that cooling down and weaning yourself off the highs of being productive can sometimes be more of a struggle than being “on” in the first place.

The best way I can describe this feeling is by calling attention to that gap that seems to exist between the time work is done for the day, to you becoming aware that it’s time to relax now. Those moments often go ignored and fall right into the transitory state bucket. It’s easy to ignore what’s considered to be an in-between moment. However, those moments are the key to pinpointing this dilemma.

It might sound easy to chalk this up to “well, just live in the moment” or “take the foot off the gas”, but I’m assuming if you’re reading this that you’ve already attempted those methods. I hate to be this guy, but the solution needs to come from within. Find that thing, that “what it is” that is keeping you enthralled in echoes of moments passed. They’re holding on to you for a reason. Why won’t they let go? And what is keeping me from taking so long to separate from them? Asking yourself these questions may be the start of inquiring into yourself in this anxious state of being. It needs to come to the forefront of your mind when you know work is done for the day. It’s time to wrap things up and leave things where they are for the day, with the knowing that they’ll be there the following day, whether you completely get them done or not.

A successful method that can be used to combat this feeling is creating a ritual for when your work is done. Now, what I don’t mean here is setting up an object and beginning to pray, but rather preparing a set of actions that you take to round out the momentum of the day. This can be as simple as journaling for five minutes at the end of your workday, setting priorities and tasks aside for the following day, or even writing down what you’ve achieved. All of these examples are meant to provide that feeling of closure.

Holding yourself back when the momentum is right can be a challenge, but working that muscle is crucial to your overall wellness. It allows you to get back to it the following day, despite everything you do after the workday, to feel rejuvenated instead of torn down when you get back to it.