Planning Ahead for Time Off

Happy 2015!

In this new year, I recommend that you plan ahead and take a little time off. Too many of us are not doing this, and it’s taking its toll.  

We’ve just come back from some time away to refresh and recharge. While it may not be practical for you to walk away from your thriving business for two weeks, we still recommend looking at the value of time off. Here are some steps we took to prepare that might help, whether you are planning an afternoon or a month away:

1. Consider the cost. We worked really hard, including travel and lots of overtime in the early weeks of December, squeezing a month worth of work into three weeks. Our first weeks of January are extremely full. We decided ahead of time it was worth it.
2. Communicate early and often. We let our clients know we were going to be away several times starting several weeks ahead of time.
3. Schedule time away carefully. Marketing is important, but rarely does an emergency arise in that area during the last two weeks of the year, so those are the only two weeks of the year Miles & Company is closed.
4. Work ahead where you can. We work at least a month ahead on client work anyway. And we prescheduled social media and blog posts. Our “best of” posts are well received by those who are checking their email during the holidays, but those who don’t aren’t missing new material.
5. Decide ahead of time what will interrupt your time away. In the event a valued client needed us for a true disaster, we planned ahead to respond. We had a watchman on email just in case.
6. Do what refreshes you. Time with family and friends topped the list for most of us. I was lucky enough to visit the beach. Tim finished a book. Which he reports was fun. Freak.

There is no doubt that time away takes extra effort, but the benefits to you, your family, and your business are worth it.