The Vacation Challenge: Good for Business?

by Joan Friedlander

I had heard that entrepreneurs need to take lots of vacations, that it is vital to our well-being and our productivity. Intellectually, I could to along with this notion, but I didn't really understand it until last month. (Even those of us disciplined enough to take time off every week, are still "on" a great deal of the time. That's a lot of brainwork at all hours of the day, and I mean ALL hours.)

It was January 4th, less than a week into the New Year, just a few short days after the end of the holiday season - and I was restless! I told my husband that we must schedule a short vacation - just he and I without our children - and get out of town; that I could not wait until Spring. I have an extreme aversion to cold weather and yet found myself fantasizing about snow and mountains. I was even willing to consider a cruise to Alaska in winter. I could not figure out what was WRONG with me.

I thought a day-trip to our local mountains might do some of the trick but it only further emphasized my need. And then it came to me. A college friend had recently moved to Oregon & sent a holiday note with pictures of her new home. It looked absolutely lovely. Then I remembered, "Hey, I'm an entrepreneur, I'm a coach! My coaching practice gives me the flexibility to take vacations when I want to." So I looked at my calendar, called my friend and scheduled a 10-day vacation - a first for me - and I left on January 19th. (My husband joined me for the last 4 days of the vacation.)

Many people decide to become entrepreneurs, to leave the structure and restrictions of the corporate world, in part so they CAN be in charge of their schedule and take more vacations. But we're like trained fleas. We still live in the 2-3 week vacation-days-a-year world. We may have spouses - like I do - who do work in that world. So we plug along and fall into the rut. We literally forget we have the freedom to choose otherwise.

To compound the issue entrepreneurs have many good reasons to postpone vacation should we actually consider taking them. These are some of the things that may stop us. Do you recognize any of them?

1. What if people call me for new business while I'm gone?
2. What about my clients? Will they survive without me?
3. I still have X, Y and Z to do…(the same old someday game)
4. I will when I have enough money
5. What about my monthly newsletter? (Ha!)

And sole proprietors are the worst. We've set it up so our business has no life without us. Here are my answers to the above:

1. Yes, new prospects may contact you while you're on vacation. With the advent of Virtual Assistants and sophisticated auto-responders you can catch a lot of these inquiries. And, yes, you may "lose" one or two prospects if they are in a hurry and want only to speak with you. I received 3 new inquiries while I was away. My auto-responder notified all email inquiries of my vacation and expected return date. One person did contact other coaches and by the time I got back to her she had already lined up enough to interview. Another was a questionable inquiry and I spoke with the other in plenty of time.

2. Yes, your clients will survive for a short time without you. As a matter of fact, if you work directly with people like I do, you will probably find they will cheer you on. Frankly, depending on the kind of business you have, for the sake of yourself, your clients and the business, you should have whatever systems and people in place you need to so that they can survive. This "I'm the only one" thing can really limit you and your business.

3. Yes, there IS always something to do. That's the nature of business ownership. And, that's why it's particularly important to take vacations, to let go. I'm pretty good about taking weekends and evenings off, but at some level my mind is always "on." Have you noticed that? That's not the secret to success. A real vacation away from business, home and family forces you to stop - unless you break the vacation rules and check your email, voice mail, or in with your assistant.

4. Oh, forget this one. What's enough money anyway?

trust you survived January without a newsletter. But, without a vacation I wouldn't have had this to write about. And, maybe you and I would keep forgetting that we are in charge of our lives and our schedules. Old habits do die hard but they are worth breaking.

I have been back a few weeks and the flow continues. As a matter of fact, I have noticed a renewed energy and increased interest in my services. Additionally, I am sleeping much, much better since I returned from vacation. Maybe tons of snow, doing lots of nothing and wall-to-wall forests away from home and work really are good for business.

I have made a new commitment to myself to take 4 vacations a year - away from home and office. They may not be long and far away (though, who knows), but they will be relaxing and refreshing.

Are you ready to take the vacation challenge? If you are interested, I encourage you to listen to my free teleclass, Dare to Take (Quarterly) Vacations.

 

by Joan Friedlander, © 2002. All rights reserved.