“Every now and then go away–for when you come back to your work your judgment will be surer.”
Leonardo DaVinci
It’s just crazy! Every time I hear an entrepreneur, business owner, commission salesperson says, ‘I can’t take a vacation’ it makes me what to shake them! First, let me say that no person is so important that they can’t take well deserved time off. Taking time off is such a healthy thing to do. It gives people time to regroup, think and maybe even come up with other great ideas that they can implement. Oh, it could also give them some long overdue sleep!
Years ago, when I was in the mortgage business as a Loan Officer, one of my realtors was appalled to think that I was going to go on a 7-day cruise with my family and be disconnected from the world. He couldn’t believe I was going to leave my clients and what would happen to them. He also informed me that he would never take a vacation, just for the reason above. What would happen to his clients? He was not happy with my response. I asked him; ‘How many transactions did he have in process right now?’ ‘Thirteen’ was his answer. I said, “God forbid, something should happen to you, do you think that those transactions are not going to close? They will because someone will pick up the ball and get them done.” He was furious, he couldn’t see himself as indispensable to his clients. Sorry, if these are your feelings too, I hate to tell you, the transactions will close. Maybe not quite as efficiently, however, they will close.
In some ways, the perception others had of me, was the same. Except, the ‘others’ were my family! They felt like I couldn’t be disconnected. They perceived that my phone and computer were just other parts of my body! (Does this sound familiar?) This really hit home to me when my husband and I were at a party and someone asked him what his favorite thing was about going on cruises and his response was, ‘She is disconnected’. I was standing off to the side and overheard this and let me tell you the brick hit me on the head so hard, the dent is still there. My poor family, they thought I couldn’t give them the attention they deserve! That is not a perception that I want the people closest to me to have and you shouldn’t either.
Let’s talk about the positives of taking a vacation other than sleep.
- Reconnecting – you get to reconnect with the people who love or care about you the most. That quality time together allows you to speak volumes to each other and sometimes without saying one word!
- Creating Memories – Whatever you do and whomever you do it with, you will be creating some memories. Even if they are just, we sat, relaxed and took in the world around us. Let me tell you when you are gone these are the things you want people talking about! And, definitely not about how much you worked.
- Thinking Time – I didn’t say that you can’t think about work at all! We can’t help it sometimes. However, with distance from the ‘old grind’ is when you might get some real clarity on some challenges you are having and find ways to remedy them. Or, you might come up with a great new marketing strategy.
- Benefits Your Health – Taking time can help relieve some of that stress you are carrying around. Whenever you can tone down the stress the rest of your body starts to relax and work more efficiently. Some of your aches and pains might subside a little! This leads you to feel better all the way around and maybe even help you live longer.
- Better Working Partner – If you have a staff, part of a staff, or just work with others, the recharging from vacation makes you a happier person. When you come back, that positive energy comes with you. It can be infectious to all around you and positive energy creates and draws in other positive energy. So, your work environment can really improve. Your clients will see it too and they will be energized!
- Enjoy Life – It is time to laugh, live, love! It is time to remind yourself that you need to do this more often. Laughter, after all, is the best medicine! So, when you are vacationing with people you can laugh with it is all the better! (We will be doing this for a weekend in September! We are going on a weekend trip with two other couples and it will just be 36 hours of laugh therapy!! I can’t wait!)
Vacations don’t have to be a week or two weeks or longer. A vacation could be a short two- or three-day trip to a place you find relaxing and enjoyable! You can find inexpensive ways to do this also! There are so many deals out there, do the research! It is about the quality of the time and how you spend it! One of my clients just spent a weekend in Colorado with his wife and two dogs, it was such a great trip of what I described above they are planning their next one to go back! That is what it is all about!
One last story. Recently, we were meeting friends for dinner at one of our favorite Italian restaurants. When we got there, not a single car was in the parking lot and that is highly unusual! On the door was a sign that read: “We are closed from June 23rd to August 27th for our annual family trip to Italy.” We were stunned, a business closing for two months for a family trip! When they get back they will be in such great frames of minds that it will be like their business never missed a beat! I say “Yeah!” for them! What great business therapy!!
I love hearing about where people love to vacation, so please leave a comment below on where you like to go and why! It might get added to my list! And if you enjoyed this blog please feel free to share!