How to stop thinking about work tasks over the weekend
Research shows that making a specific plan for unfinished tasks quiets the mental nagging. A 10-minute Friday routine puts that to work.
It is Friday afternoon, and for a lot of people the hardest part of the weekend is the work that is not finished. The report that is half done or the email you still need to answer can follow you to dinner and into Saturday.
There is research on why that happens and what helps. In a 2011 paper in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, psychologists E. J. Masicampo and Roy Baumeister found that unfinished goals tend to cause intrusive thoughts. When people made a specific plan for how and when they would finish a goal, those thoughts faded, even though the work itself was still undone. A plan lets your mind set the task aside until the time you picked.
You can use this with a short routine before you log off today. First, write down every open task, big or small, so nothing is only living in your head. Second, next to each one, write the very next step and the day and time you will do it, such as "Monday 9 a.m.: draft the first two slides." Third, put the list where you will see it Monday morning, at the top of your inbox or on your desk.
If something truly cannot wait until Monday, this is also the moment to notice it and send a quick note to your manager or teammate now.
Give it ten minutes before you leave. A clear list on Friday makes it easier to enjoy Saturday.
Sources
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