Are You Overworked & Under-Traveled?

I hope you’re having a great week and that your taxes have been successfully filed!

My daughter is visiting Ellis Island, the Statue of Liberty, and the Empire State Building today in NYC with her band.  It’s strange to me, being from PA and transplant here in NC, that many of her friends have never been to NYC.  How fun that must have been for her to watch her friends see NYC for the first time!

Today, I want to remind you about the importance of taking vacation time. First, a few things about why taking a vacation is not just (hopefully) a perk of your job but immensely important to your loved ones. 

I know you may or may not take a trip to Europe this summer, but definitely GO SOMEWHERE – even if it’s local…. get out of your house, and take that time!  It is precious and irreplaceable! Enjoy! -Sandy

What? You’re thinking of skipping your vacation again this year?

Americans are among the hardest working people in the world…and receive the fewest vacation days from our employers.

So why is it that every year Americans throw away an estimated 415 million vacation days by skipping their vacation!

Here are four reasons why you should be going on vacation this year!

Revive your productivity

We all know that small breaks throughout the day help us over the short term, but it’s vital that we take longer breaks from work to sustain and even build our creativity and productivity. Being away from your work environment for a longer period of time will help you gain a fresh perspective about your work, as well as providing you with the opportunity to pursue your other interests.

Vacation time is part of your compensation; it’s not a job “perk”

Remember when you applied for the job? Weren’t your allotted a certain number of vacation days per year part of the compensation package? It’s not a “perk”. It’s a return on the investment of our time and expertise in helping our organization to reach their objectives. Would you not accept a monetary bonus at the end of the year? That’s how we need to think of vacations.

Serve as a role model for others at your workplace

Whether you are in a leadership role or not, you need to take a vacation! Employees will look to their leaders and co-workers for guidance on what is allowed and what is frowned upon. Despite the workloads that may be building on your desks, it still very important to take time off work in order to maintain your effectiveness in your role.

So whether you’re in Bora-Bora, Paris or Hawaii, show your team they CAN manage without you!

While we all like to think that we’re indispensable, the reality is we need to encourage the company’s growth and overall morale.

Taking time off from work will encourage team members to develop strategies and abilities that will help them learn how to effectively hold down the fort while you’re away.

We need our leaders and other employees to bring their best efforts to reaching the organization’s goals.

The best way we can encourage this is to make sure everyone takes their vacations so that they might bring a fresh perspective and new ideas back from vacation.

Hopefully, this will encourage you to understand why skipping your next vacation is so not worth it!