Most corporations have plans to bring employees back to the office in the upcoming year, which means your office could be the next company to announce its return-to-office (RTO) intentions.
An RTO mandate promises to disrupt your work situation. Your days of sleeping in until one minute before you’re due online are over. Soon, you’ll have to get up early to be out on the roads in order to clock in at 9 o’clock.
Are you feeling overwhelmed yet? Don’t worry — check out the tips below to help you prepare for your first day in the office.
1. Know Your Commute
One thing every RTO-er must think about is their commute. It doesn’t matter if you’ve never worked in the office before or you’re returning to the same route you used to take pre-pandemic. You have to map out this travel in every sense of the word, getting to know your route, the timing, and the cost.
The cost of your commute might be the toughest thing to handle during your RTO. According to a 2023 survey, the average commuter spends $8,466 on this drive each year — the equivalent of nearly 20% of their annual income!
Fuel and vehicle maintenance take a good portion of that overall cost, with the average driver spending $867 fuelling up and $410 tuning up their cars each year.
Keep these figures in mind when you budget for your commuting costs. While you may not face identical costs, they give you a good idea of what you have in store.
2. Save an Emergency Fund
The law of averages dictates some people will spend less than $410 fixing their cars, and some commuters will spend a lot more.
Your emergency fund helps you cover those repairs that exceed your expectations, like having to replace front and back brakes and rotors — a job that can easily cost double these estimates.
Setting aside about $100 every month in your emergency fund might feel difficult at first. But these contributions are a lot easier to handle than a $1,000 job upfront.
Of course, you can have the best intentions to save, and life sends a curveball before you transfer your first contribution.
If you rely on that car to get to work, you can consider taking out an online personal line of credit to cover your repairs. To understand how a line of credit works, check out a site like MoneyKey to learn more about this emergency option.
A line of credit can act as a substitute for savings in urgent situations, but it won’t replace them outright. So don’t forget to save towards an emergency fund, even while you’re paying off your balance.
3. Clean up Your Sleep Hygiene
A day that starts at 6 a.m. so that you can shower, eat, and get out the door in time for your commute is a lot different from one that starts at 8:58, when you roll out of bed to turn on your computer.
Transitioning to an earlier wakeup call is easier when you invest in these sleep hygiene practices:
- Go to bed and wake up at the same time every night.
- Stop using tech at least an hour before bed.
- Don’t eat or drink right before bedtime.
- Meditate, stretch, or read from a physical book 30 minutes before bed.
- Ensure your bedroom is dark, quiet, and cool.
- Try to get enough exercise throughout the day.
- Aim to get at least seven hours of sleep each night.
The new year may represent a new beginning if your company announces an RTO mandate. You can be prepared for anything when you follow these tips.
