How to disconnect to reconnect
The diary of a workaholic* beating FOMO
It’s easy to lose your focus when you’re constantly connected. Even the attempt to stay focused can eventually become distracting. And this observation comes from a person who keeps trying new techniques to stay focused, connected, and driven.
I am passionate about my work to the extent that I enjoy trying out new methods to maintain my productivity. Content marketing is fascinating and there is always something new to test. Content marketing is also fast-paced and if you want to stay updated, you need to put an additional effort on it. That’s how I end up working on my job, my tasks, my side projects, my reading, my writing and everything else that is even slightly relevant to what I call my passion.
The attempt to disconnect — an overview

It was the first time after two years that I decided to disconnect for a week. I wasn’t planning to disappear from mother Earth, nor did I throw my devices to the ocean (my Instagram feed is the proof of it). However, I decided to leave out my passion aside and pretend that it’s easy for me to disconnect from it (spoiler alert, it’s not).
I knew it would be challenging, as I’m not used to having an adequate amount of free time. That’s why we’re going on holiday. To spend some time away from our routines. It either makes you or breaks you (this could also work as a relationship advice).
If I had to draft an overview of a week away from work, this could be a short summary:
- Day 1: Travelling. No Internet connection. Just books. Strictly nothing that has to do with content, marketing, or anything that would be predictable for me. That’s how I ended up reading an analysis of Trump’s branding through the years in Naomi Klein’s “No is not enough”. Good choice to start your holiday?
- Day 2: Beach time. This was probably the part I missed the most the last two years. All the small things that we enjoy can keep us happy. My reading choice today was “Furiously happy” by Jenny Lawson. What a wonderful read to explore the daily struggle of living with mental illnesses. I can’t believe I’d describe such a book as hilarious and inspiring.
- Day 3: Family time. Parents, siblings, friends, cats. A combination that can certainly keep you busy. And possibly disconnected when you realise that time stops in every family visit. That’s when you remind yourself that you’re still on holiday and head back to the beach. “Furiously happy” is now over. This is probably the first time I’m depressed for finishing a book. Probably not the feeling Lawson wanted her readers to end up with.
- Day 4: Huh? Tuesday feels totally like a Tuesday. That’s when I struggle to stay disconnected and feel the urge to get back to my routine. I’m trying to remain my holiday mode by distracting myself throughout the day. Everything that can keep me busy without actually doing anything works. That’s how I ended up bathing my cat, tanning by the beach, practicing yoga with my 3-month old niece.
- Day 5: Couldn’t resist. My mind made it clear that it had to get a glimpse of the usual routine again. That’s how I ended up checking my emails, replying to a couple of urgent ones and then logging out again before I start prepping my tasks for my return. It was obvious that I would’t completely disconnect for a whole week, but I still managed to make it till day 5. My new read is Oscar Wilde’s “The Picture of Dorian Gray”. Back to classics.
- Day 6: The art of being bored. I’m not used to feeling bored. It’s like a luxury for me lately. Even when I’m not working, a movie, or a festival keeps me busy. These were part of a routine that I was avoiding though, so I decided to enjoy my boredom. I kept reminding myself that this will enhance my creativity and my desire to stay productive. All I had to do was to stop keeping myself busy.
- Day 7: Mentally prepping for work. It’s not surprising that my seventh day consisted of a mental preparation of the tasks I need to do tomorrow. I allowed myself to go through this process to make sure I don’t feel overwhelmed from the return. I realised that when I started planning my tasks, my breathing was different, the stress was increasing, my focus was different. Good observation to keep in mind. At least I finished reading “The Picture of Dorian Gray”. My second read in six days. I’m impressed.
It was surprising for me to leave my laptop aside for six days and stay away from any pattern that I normally enjoy following. Yes, it felt weird. I felt the need to jump into tasks, get back to marketing reads, start writing content ideas, check my company’s social platforms, test analytics, reply to more emails, etc etc.
I also managed to keep myself disciplined and resist to the workaholic’s temptations. It sounds silly to be proud of beating work-related FOMO, but for me it’s an achievement. I’m really surprised of how calm and connected I felt by enjoying long sunny mornings, sleepy afternoon, wonderful sunsets, fun and casual nights.
Apparently you need to disconnect to feel more connected than ever. Once you reconnect, it feels even better than before.
Now it’s time to get back to work and catchup with everything that I’ve missed. This instantly gets stressful, but to be fair, I’m actually on a two-week holiday, split between two days of remote work in-between to cover some basis tasks. (The excuse of a proper workaholic!)
This means that the first week was only half the journey on how to enjoy boredom. In fact, I’m going to explore the art of disconnecting to reconnect, to disconnect again in order to ultimately reconnect.
Did I just complicate things again for no reason?
(Did I just write 1000+ words on how I’ve spent my holiday?)
*My definition of the term “workaholic” is not limited to a job, but a general interest in a field. It is the passion about a job and everything that entails it. It’s the desire to keep improving yourself, to stay focused and productive, while exploring new paths, new ideas, new creative directions. This is the only way to consider myself a proud workaholic. And it can still bring you close to a burnout.
