When It’s Time to Take a Break

Happy winter break to all of the stressed out students and anxious grade-receivers out there! For some, two weeks off from school will feel like a much deserved vacation, but for others, it might feel like a great opportunity to get work done and be productive. Whichever side of the spectrum you’re on, it’s imperative that you take some time to yourself and block out all of the work and stress. And, we’re going to guide you through what to do to make sure you have the break you deserve.

What do you really need to do?

Part one is assessing the situation, especially if you think you’re going to get work done over the holiday break. Because, there really shouldn’t be that many things you need to do. The semester just ended and your teachers are (hopefully) not looking to grade things as soon as they get back to school.

Speaking from experience, the work you probably have is primarily for clubs or extracurriculars, meaning that there isn’t a strict due date like there is for an assignment. So, there’s no reason to frantically work your relaxation time away. Get things done on plane rides or on days when you’re truly bored, but don’t spend all of your time working.

Rejuvenate yourself

Chances are, you feel utterly exhausted after this semester. And, you deserve to feel that way! But, doing more work isn’t going to help. Give yourself a time and a place to do whatever you need to do for school, but when that time is up and place is gone, then put school away. If you let yourself continue to work through the break, you’re never going to feel relaxed and rested. It is essential that you calm down your brain and your body, so that you can come back even stronger for semester 2 (which everyone knows takes a whole extra amount of force to get through).

Take the drastic measure

Winter break is family time! Or, maybe it’s travel time. It might even just be ‘doom scroll on your phone’ time. But, none of those things involve school. We’re not saying to completely ignore every part of school for two weeks and then come back in January completely oblivious to what’s happening, but we are saying to put your device down and touch some grass. If you need to dramatically rip out pages of a notebook or even lock your school device away for a few hours, then do it. Remember, the goal is to relax and to not think about school.

“But there are so many things I could be doing!”

We’re going to be real with you here: are there really? In the grand scheme of things, what do you lose academically by taking some time off? Working over winter break might feel like some sort of cheat code to get ahead of everyone else, but there’s a break for a reason. You’ll be much more productive and a much better student if you can come back to school in January recharged and ready, not with the same burnout you feel now.

It’s the holidays, and school can wait. Take that break, put away your laptop, and go do things for you. You can’t grow if you don’t rest, and you’ve already put in the work, so take that rest. As for us here at Planning Goose, we’ll be back with Blog posts and digital tools in 2026. Have a wonderful (and relaxing) winter break, and we’ll see you again in January.