Disconnect this Christmas - a 2-minute hack to forget about work

Do you find it difficult to truly disconnect from work at the weekend or on holiday? Do you ever wake up in the middle of the night worrying about something you need to do?

You’re not alone.

A 2025 study found that 81% of workers check emails outside working hours, and 63% check their emails on the weekend. A Spanish study found that 63% of those interviewed worked while on holiday!

Don’t worry though. I’ve got some good news.

Today we’re going to learn why we struggle to disconnect, and you’re going to learn a two minute end-of-day trick that will instantly give you back your evenings, weekends and holidays.

The Zeigarnik Effect

In the 1920s, a psychologist named Bluma Zeigarnik noticed something odd.

While eating in a café, she noticed that waiters were able to remember really complicated food orders, yet they completely forgot them the moment the customers paid.

She theorised that the brain keeps incomplete tasks active in memory until closure is achieved.

To test this she ran her own tests. She gave participants lots of tasks, such as completing a puzzle, interrupting some of the tasks midway. She found that the participants remembered the interrupted tasks almost twice as well as the completed ones.

In other words, we remember things that are still psychologically “open” far better than things that feel finished.

That’s why, when we were at school, we could remember tons of facts for our end-of-year exams but forgot almost all of them over the summer holidays.

Lots of incomplete tasks are not good for us

Many people pride themselves on being able to do many things at the same time, however the problem with having lots of unfinished tasks in your head is that it creates “open loops” that occupy mental energy causing stress and distraction.

Basically, your brain keeps unfinished tasks active, replaying them in the background until you create a sense of closure.

So how can you fix it?

It turns out you don’t actually have to finish the task to close it, you just have to tell your brain that the task is captured, so it doesn’t need to keep rehearsing it. For most people, simply adding it to a trusted to-do list is enough.

Tip of the week

Before you leave the office each day create a “things to do tomorrow” list.

• Dump everything in your brain onto a list – tasks, worries, follow-ups, random “don’t forget to…” thoughts.

• If you write it in a notebook, close the notebook.

• If you put it in an app or digital note, close the note or the app.

That physical act of closing really helps. You’re signalling to your brain: this is parked, it’s safe, you can stop thinking about it now.

By simply capturing the task your brain will stop thinking about it and free your mind to be more present for your partner and kids.

Pro tip: for middle-of-the-night worries

Still waking up in the night? Keep a notebook by your bed to jot down your thoughts.

Instead of lying there rehearsing an email or replaying a meeting, write one or two lines, close the notebook, and tell yourself, “It’s on the list. I’ll deal with it tomorrow.”

Why this matters for happiness at work

Thinking about work outside work affects your sense of autonomy. If your brain is constantly dragged back to your inbox, it doesn’t feel like you have any choice over how to spend your time.

Being able to stop thinking about work the moment you leave the office (or close the laptop) gives you a greater sense of control over your work–life balance, and that sense of control is strongly linked to how happy you feel at work.

This Christmas: try the 2-minute shutdown ritual

Before you leave the office or close your computer for the holidays:

1. Write everything down – tasks, worries, “mustn’t forget” ideas.

2. Decide when you’ll look at it next (e.g. “first thing on 2 January”).

3. Close the notebook or app and say, “That’s it. I’m done for now.”

I can’t promise a perfect “Love Actually” or “Griswold Family” Christmas but at least you won’t be thinking about work.