3 Steps To A Successful Break

It’s that time of year – school is heading out and sunscreen is coming on. Whether vacation just passed, is actively happening, or is rapidly approaching, this time of year brings its own kind of challenges. Rained out activities, kids fighting, and lack of structure may end up leaving you frustrated. 

The question becomes, how do we cope when expectations and realities don’t line up?

1. Clarify expectations in advance

It is hard to not get caught up in the nitty gritty details of it all – especially for those of us who are planners. I was meant to leave the house at 8:57 to make it to the zoo at 9:45 just before tickets open and the line gets crazy. While details are important, so are the reasons you did all of this planning in the first place. The first step to a successful vacation is asking yourself what are my goals for this break? For some the answer may be spending time with family, for others taking a break from tedious work, and for others it is to have as much fun in the week as possible. With your vacation goals in mind, details falling through won’t cause as much stress. While it is frustrating that the zoo tickets didn’t work out, you got to spend an extra hour in the car listening to music with your children – what better bonding than that?

If you’re vacationing with others, it’s a good idea to sit down and decide together what you want to feel like looking back on your winter break. That way, you will have a mutual understanding of how to proceed when things (inevitably) don’t go according to plan. 

2. Set structure

While some people are caught up in their moment to moment planning, others feel overwhelmed by the lack of structure that vacation creates. Instead of allowing the long days and nights to sweep you up leaving you feeling out of control, setting a loose schedule for yourself can be a life savor during this undefined time. If you are with others over break, get together to collaboratively brainstorm what kind of structure will work best for you as a group. Start by setting a realistic wake up time for each day – something a little later than usual that won’t leave you feeling like you slept your day away. Give yourself one activity per day, whether a trip to a museum, library, or even the grocery store, because getting yourself out of the house will help you avoid the winter slump. And finally, give yourself a bed time which you stick to – leave any technology out of the room to ensure you don’t fall down the rabbit-hole that leads to late hours of the night. One big key to a successful day is a good night of sleep – give yourself this gift when school or work isn’t pulling you in all different directions.

3. Be mindful 

To allow all of this to happen, the best thing that you can do for yourself is to experience your vacation mindfully. Recognize that the way you think affects the way that you are going to feel and therefore act! Start each morning off with a deep breath to allow for clearer thoughts throughout the day. Notice the thoughts or feelings that you’re experiencing, when you start to feel an unhelpful thought creep up. Allow yourself to observe this thought without judgement. Acknowledge feeling disappointed – observe it and then let it move away. When you are participating in an activity, go all in. Allow yourself to be fully present with the people around you, the place you are in, and your internal dialogue. Doing this puts you in the driver’s seat, and with this awareness, you are set up for success.

Keep these three things in mind over the course of your break to feel more success than stress.