As I write this, it’s mid-2022 and I have a vacation coming up. It’s amazing how even the mere looking-forward to some time away from the daily routine is refreshing. It’s not a ‘major vacation’ in that it’s still in our state – not going too far. However, it will be several days away from the office and typical responsibilities. It’s nice to have something to look forward to.
This is the mindset that brought the topic for this blog to mind. It will be our second trip since early 2020 when COVID started in the US, and it is definitely time to do something different.
Taking extended time away from your work is vitally important if you want to be able to continue to perform well. Even if you have good schedule flexibility, in that you can work when you want and take plenty of time off for family needs, it’s still important to have extended vacation time where you get away from the typical personal routines as well. It’s during those times that your mind truly gets refreshed.
I went through several years where I felt that vacation wasn’t as important. My business was doing well without my minute-by-minute guidance, and I had plenty of time to go to sports events for my kids. I could take off whatever time I needed, and my team at work did a great job handling the daily functions. For these reasons, I started to think that vacation wasn’t really necessary. That wasn’t true.
Taking extended time away from work is mentally much different than merely attending a family function. It’s hard to truly unplug if it’s something you are only doing for a couple hours. I’m not referring to simply our electronic devices. It applies to redirecting your mental energy as well. Taking a true vacation where you travel somewhere, see different surroundings, and sleep in a different location all help you to truly unplug. It’s much different than a few hours off.
The purpose of this post is to simply remind you that although it’s commendable if your business can do well for a while without you, it’s not the same as truly taking time off. We all as leaders need to have time to refresh our minds. It helps us to be more creative in dealing with issues that arise, and also helps us to have a better growth mindset long-term. You wouldn’t want your team to go stale by never taking some time off, so you should hold yourself to the same standard. Take time off – it's necessary.
Please reach out if there is anything we can be of assistance with. As always, I wish you the best in your business.
Mark Goldman
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