How to Look Like You’re Working When You’re On Vacation

If you’re like me, it’s hard for you to shut down shop to go on vacation. You sneak a peek at your email now and then, or work from your hotel room. But not this time. This very moment, I’m exploring the green grasses of Ireland with my mother. But you wouldn’t know it.

First, let me make the case for completely unplugging from work. I run a very small company, so pretty much nothing happens if I’m not working, though I do have a writer who continues to work while I’m gallivanting across the UK. But when I’m too much in my business, I’m not really helping it. I need to step back and have some space to continue to be a good President (it’s the same for parenting, but that’s another post).

So completely forgetting about my business for a week or two actually helps it grow.

Now, on to explaining how to look like I’m working. I scheduled several blog posts to go live while I was sampling the finer beers of Ireland so that cobwebs wouldn’t gather on my blog in my absence. I completed all my projects for the period I’d be gone ahead of time. I let my clients know I’d be gone, so that they’d have a chance to get any last-minute projects completed.

That’s it. That’s my secret. And what I find when I unplug like this is that the world doesn’t collapse with my time away. No marketing emergencies happen in my absence. I come back refreshed, and jump right back into the flow.

Now, will you promise to do the same on your next vacation?

Photo: epsos.de on Flickr