Work And Play: How To Vacation While On The Job

Check out these expert tips on how to successfully get work done while vacationing.

Originally Published Aug. 1, 2016.

You’ve likely been there before—in desperate need of a vacation but afraid to leave behind the tons of work that needs to be done. That growing, urgent pile of work that will inevitably be waiting for you upon your return.

You wouldn’t be the first to be faced with that situation.

In fact, you’re probably like many vacationers who try to avoid that very situation by balancing it all at once, getting their relaxation on while simultaneously assuring their office isn’t burning down.

Though this may sound all good theoretically, it rarely ever goes that smoothly. Something always wins. Either you’re constantly checking emails and taking calls, ultimately defeating the purpose of a vacation, or you give in completely to vacating, ignoring all communication with the office, and you return to head-swooning work overload.

Keynote speaker, executive trainer, and founder of national corporate consulting company Professional Matters, Dana Brownlee, has a solution for your balancing issue with her 95% unplugged vacation mode. Check out her insight below:

Get Your Significant Other On Board

This one seems like it may be tough, but Brownlee suggests getting an agreement from your spouse/partner upfront and letting them know exactly what you need, the time, and how long it will take you to do it.

Know When to Say No

The plan is 5% business—just enough to keep your sanity, respond to emergencies, and keep operations flowing. If you find yourself itching to handle a task that can be performed when you return, don’t.

Set a specified amount of ‘check-in time.’

Stick to no more than this amount of time, and definitely less if you can manage it.

Use Family Downtime Wisely

Only check-in or conduct business activities during family downtime. You may have to alter your personal vacation sleep schedule to accommodate work and family—consider if the sacrifice is worth it. If your family happens to make a quick run, giving you alone time to get things done, have at it.

Don’t bring laptops or other devices that might encourage work

The idea is that you shouldn’t PLAN to do any work. Only allow yourself to respond to communications as absolutely needed to maintain your sanity and keep things afloat in your absence.

Know when to pull back

If anyone in your family starts complaining, you’re probably beyond the 5% mark, so pull back and refocus. If you’re working too much, what’s the point of the vacation?

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