5 Ways Copilot Can Help Reduce Your Holiday Stress at Work

As this year draws to a close, workloads always seem to ramp up, and our inboxes get busier, and the battle for who goes on annual leave first.

The holiday season might be filled with twinkly lights and cheerful jumpers. Still, for many people at work, it also brings added pressure from deadlines and a general sense that everything must be wrapped up immediately, which isn’t even possible!

Thankfully, Copilot is here to help you smooth out the end-of-year chaos that often occurs. Whether you’re preparing your in-depth handovers, managing your team’s workload, or simply trying to protect what’s left of your focus time.

Copilot and support a calmer and more considered December.

So let’s get into it. Here are five ways Copilot can help reduce holiday stress at work. Each has a ready-to-use prompt to make your festive workflow that little bit merrier.

 

1. Use Copilot to Block Focus Time Before the Festive Rush Hits

The run-up to the holidays is noisy, metaphorically and literally… Copilot can analyse your diary, understand your workload, and automatically schedule focused work blocks so you aren’t frantically finishing tasks on your last working day.

The prompt: “Create a schedule of focused work blocks between now and my holiday leave date, using availability in my Outlook calendar. Prioritise tasks from Planner and To Do, and suggest realistic durations based on task complexity.”

 

2. Draft a Polite Out-Of-Office and “I’m actually on leave” Messages

December is the prime season for unclear boundaries. One minute you’re putting your out-of-office on, the next thing you know, you’re replying to someone who “just needs five minutes”, from the middle of the garden centre or the supermarket.

Copilot can help you draft confident, polite and professional boundaries that protect your downtime without sounding like a festive Scrooge.

The Prompt: “Draft two versions of an out-of-office message: one formal and one warm and festive. Include my leave dates, redirect contacts to named colleagues, and clarify that I won’t be checking emails during this period.”

 

3. Manage Workloads Calmly with Copilot’s Daily Prioritisation

Holiday stress often comes from trying to do everything at once.

Copilot can help you to prioritise tasks, surface what’s important, and gently nudge what can absolutely wait until January.

Using your existing Microsoft 365 data, Copilot can create a clear and achievable plan for your final working weeks. And it will do it without the pressure to squeeze in last every action…

The Prompt: “Review my current tasks and communications. Identify the most urgent work that must be completed before the break, suggest tasks that can move to January, and outline a prioritised to-do list with estimated time requirements.”

 

4. Prepare Clear and Stress-free Handovers with Copilot

A good handover is the difference between a peaceful holiday and a Teams message entitled “Quick question…” on Boxing Day. Copilot can help you build a complete handover document in minutes – summarising your current projects, outstanding actions, key contacts, and risks.

It ensures your team is informed and you’re able to switch off, knowing everything is documented properly.

The Prompt: “Generate a clear and concise handover document summarising active projects, responsibilities, deadlines, risks and who to contact for each. Include an overview of any pending actions and notes for colleagues covering my workload.”

 

5. Help Teams Disconnect and Recharge with Viva Insights + Copilot

The holiday season should be a time to rest, reflect and recharge, not quietly catch up on overdue documents. With Viva Insights and Copilot, teams can set boundaries, adjust working patterns, and promote healthier habits before the new year begins.

Copilot can help draft wellbeing messages, set up gentle nudges, and create team-level recommendations that support genuine time away from work.

The Prompt: “Write a wellbeing-focused message I can share with my team, encouraging them to disconnect over the holiday period. Use insights about meeting load and after-hours work to offer practical recommendations for rest and healthier habits.”

 

Final Thoughts

Holiday stress at work is nothing new, but how we manage it can be. So this year lets reduce holiday stress at work with Copilot.

Copilot gives individuals and teams the tools to work more calmly, more clearly and more sustainably. Whether you’re protecting focus time, preparing to switch off or encouraging your team to rest, Copilot helps create more mindful ways of working during one of the busiest times of year.