Countless months of lonesome coffees and daily commutes which require rolling out of bed, slipping into our comfiest attire, and opening our laptop lid. Lockdown has forced us to become accustomed to a new way of life recently. Some of us adapted quickly, whereas others found it more of a struggle. 

Although we hoped 2021 would be different, so far, the UK has once again been plunged into another month of lockdown restrictions. However, at some point, we’re going to have to readapt and evolve back to what we were used to: alarms set a few hours earlier, a stressful morning commute through rush hour, and face-to-face socialisation.  

There are two ways you can do this. The first option is to slip into a not-so-subtle snooze by 10:30 and somehow make your way through the workday delirious and exhausted. The second is to make it through the day fully conscious and determined. 

Here, we’ll explore how you can succeed when we finally make it back into the office in 2021. 

Regular exercise 

Gyms are once again closed and although there was major investment in home workout equipment when lockdown first began, many of us turned to takeaways and copious glasses of malbec as the winter months closed in on us.  

Although we’ve passed 21st December – the shortest and darkest day of the year – once we returned to the office, the hours in the day will seem even more limited. Commuting will make it even harder to find the time to exercise regularly. Set aside an hour each day to meditate, run, or lift weights. If you start now, it’ll be much easier to last a full day when you’re back at work.  

Ditch your sweats 

When we were put into lockdown, we all likely hoped to change our lives as little as possible, clothing being one important factor. 

You’ll likely be aware of people who get dressed properly every day to keep in the right frame of mind for work. We probably all got dressed for the first month or so of lockdown, but after month give, we’d given up. Sadly, so many of us have gotten lazy in terms of what we wear to work from home, and it can affect how we feel. Hoodies and sweatpants are undeniably comfortable, but it isn’t going to cut it when we’re back in the lion’s den. So, you need to cut it out now so normal clothes are less of a shock to the system. 

While you might be tempted to throw yourself into formal clothing and sit at your kitchen table in three-piece suits for men and evening dresses for women, you should be getting back into the swing of smart casual a few weeks before you return to the office. Work your way up so you’re not in major discomfort. 

Early bird… 

Sleep Cycle app reported that Brits are getting approximately 42 minutes more sleep a night than they did before lockdown. The average time we’re waking up has moved from 7:44am to 8:16am — a very welcome extra 32 minutes.  

If you’re worried about being able to wake up much earlier than you were used to, stop hitting the snooze button now and get into the habit of getting up a bit earlier. You should also turn off your electronics for a considerable amount of time before you go to sleep and go to bed earlier. This will increase the chances of you getting to sleep at a good time to get in your eight hours.  

Where am I with work? 

Once you’re back into the usual daily routine of the office, it can be easy to get overwhelmed and lose track of where you are with your tasks. Consider documenting your goals at the start of the workday to make sure you get done what you planned. This will also allow you to see what you accomplished at the end of the week and help keep motivated for the subsequent work weeks. 

Coming back to the office will be a challenge, but if you take steps to make your life easier, your work weeks will run a lot smoother than you anticipated.