“I’m not going to do another year where I work straight through from January to December without taking any time off”. That’s what I’d said at the beginning of 2015.
Fast forward 12 months and there I was. Beyond exhausted. Absolutely shattered.
2015 had been ‘full on’ and I’d been operating at a crazy pace. There I was … halfway through December and I’d done the exact opposite of what I’d promised myself … again.
So I went home to Australia for a break.
After a week I got back on the plane to San Francisco even though I knew I wasn’t feeling 100% recharged.
“You’re not ready to go back. You need another week. Maybe two. What’s the rush?” The voice inside my head was on to something.
So I took another 10 days off. And guess what? The world kept on turning while I was offline! The company didn’t collapse into a heap. The office didn’t burn down. The team didn’t all run away to Puerto Vallarta!
Even though it was halfway through January, I decided to make my 2016 New Years resolution.
Yes – I only made one: I would take a 4-day weekend every month. Device free. A 4-day full technological detox to re-charge every single month.
After all a one-week break after working non-stop for 51 weeks is not enough to ensure you re-charge properly.
Stop kidding yourself. You’re not invincible. Nobody is. We all need to re-charge. Whether we’re listening to a voice inside our head or whether we choose to listen to our body, we just need to stop, listen and re-charge.
Our friends at Expedia have put together this awesome Infographic revealing 12 reasons why your brain craves vacation time. And for any business owners or managers reading this, take particular note of points #7, #8 and #9: Vacation time ultimately improves work quality, inspires creativity, and enhances performance at work!
Author
Paul Slezak
With over two decades of experience in the recruitment and human capital industry, Paul Slezak has established himself as a transformative force in the realm of leadership and career coaching, group facilitation, and talent acquisition. His unique perspective, drawn from his early career as a leader in global recruitment firms and his entrepreneurial success with his own start-up, has enabled him to make a significant impact on leaders, teams, and organizations across the world. Paul's passion for helping others achieve success and high performance is evident in his commitment to transforming leaders and their teams at local, national, and international levels. He specializes in promoting the importance of human-centered intelligence, focusing on soft skills such as authenticity, transparency, and trust to complement business-centered acumen and drive better workplace outcomes. As an impartial facilitator, Paul brings his expertise to team offsites and strategy days, ensuring alignment on goals, values, and culture while keeping participants on task. His engaging and energetic presence, coupled with his unique "entertraining" and "edutaining" delivery style, enables him to connect with audiences both large and intimate, sharing personal and professional anecdotes that inspire and energize.
