Coming to Work After the Holiday: Return With Intention, Not Just Routine

There’s something powerful about returning to work after a real break, after the phone slows down. After spending time with family, your mind shifts from a pace of urgency to one of presence. That return, when done right, is not just a resumption of routine. It’s a moment of realignment.

When you come to work after a holiday, you have a rare window of clarity. You’re no longer caught in the swirl of back-to-back tasks or the echo of last week’s problems. You arrive with a fresh lens. And what you choose to do in that first week back says more about your leadership than any plan written before you left.

I’ve experienced this many times after Eid, after travel, after intentional pauses. I used to return thinking I had to “catch up.” Now I return thinking: how do I reset smarter? How do I lead differently?

Coming to work after the holiday is your chance to do a few bold things:

• Recommit to what matters. Not every priority before the break still deserves your attention.

• Set the tone. Your energy sets the rhythm for your team, bringing clarity rather than chaos.

• Act on what clarity shows you. That idea you had over coffee on the third day of Eid? Give it room now.

This isn’t just about productivity. It’s about alignment. It's the leader's job, not to return faster, but to return wiser.

One of the best founders I’ve worked with made it a ritual to spend the first day back after any break reviewing not what they missed, but what they could improve. They asked, 'What needs to be simplified?' What conversations haven’t happened? What assumptions do I need to challenge?

Because the best growth happens not in acceleration, but in recalibration.

As you return to your desk, your team, and your roadmap, don’t just fall back into your old steps. Step forward with purpose. Don’t just rejoin the noise, return with rhythm.

Coming to work after the holiday is a gift. Make it your launchpad.

Mouammar AlHadidi

Founder & CEO

Strada&Co