Hi everyone,
I would like to wish you all the best for the holiday season! I know that a lot of people will be working throughout the holidays, but I wanted to take a few seconds to reflect on importance of taking a complete break from work during the year, which for me tends to be around this time.
In our hyper connected world, it is easy to be tempted to still work during our downtime, but do you really find yourself relaxing with your family or friends, or are you checking emails and fitting in more paperwork? Although it does sometimes feel like organisations reward those who appear to work long hours and prioritise work over other commitments, in the long run burnout does not win.
You may be asking yourself, why should I take a break now with everyone else? Or what are the benefits of taking a complete break this Christmas? You may even say that nothing happens in the office during this time, so why waste leave? While it may seem like there are better times to take a break, do you ever actually end up taking those times throughout the year? If you never take the time to completely disconnect from work (especially in a period when “not much is happening”), all this does is rob you of the chance of going into the new year refreshed. The holiday period should be seen as a chance to unleash your creativity by allowing your unconscious brain time to process ideas and sometimes produce creative solutions which are essential for your mental wellbeing. Additionally, it allows you to recharge before the start of a new year. Anyone that has kept sacrificing annual leave because they are “too busy” can testify to the toll it takes. We just don’t operate at our best without breaks from the routine and time to recharge.
Anyway, that’s my 2 cents and I hope that you manage to (at the very least) force yourself to take 10 consecutive days off somewhere throughout the year. If you do end up taking a break and are like me (I sometimes find myself getting bored and looking for something to do), instead of quickly “checking in on work”, you should rather look into having some fun hacking your way through this holiday period. TryHackMe have released their advent calendar of Christmas challenges which are really fun and have a ton of hints if you get stuck. Additionally, SANS Kringlecon challenges were released this week and you can stay up to date with their festive season event on their Kringlecon Twitter page. I think they are both fantastic events, and I end up recommending them every year!
I will be doing a year in review at the start of next year, but I wanted to do a short post reminding you to take some time for yourselves before next year. Take some time to rest, relax, and spend quality time with your friends and family. I hope that was encouraging, especially if you do plan to take a complete break. I have plenty of exciting new posts lined up for 2023 including some externally published content that I cannot wait to show you. Until then, eat well, rest up and have a wonderful festive season. As always, if there’s something you’d specifically like me to look at and write a blog post on, you are welcome to message me.
I hope you all have a fantastic Christmas break, See you in 2023!