Total Vacation
Posted on June 22, 2012
I’ve noticed a trend in business and in general, that people don’t really take vacations anymore. They take time off, but they bring their cell phones, tablets, and laptops with them. They check their voice mail and email and generally stay connected. I’d like to suggest that this is doing a disservice to themselves, their companies, and their jobs. I say, disconnect totally and make it a real vacation!
No one is so important that you can’t be away from your job for a few days, and nothing is so important that it won’t wait until you get back. And here’s the difference. If you leave all that connectedness behind, you have a real chance to relax and recharge, that you won’t get if you continue to stay “linked in”.
In the old days, I used to go on vacations that deliberately put me out of range of phones or computers. If I was at 12,000 feet in the High Sierra, or at the bottom of the Grand Canyon, I was unreachable by technology. That’s no longer the case. Even if I hiked in the remote Himalayas, I could receive phone calls or emails now. But I can choose not to receive them also. I can leave my devices behind, and completely unwind from the pressures of the modern interconnected world.
Some might say, what about emergencies, a serious accident or death in the family? I would answer; imagine yourself back in the late 1700’s or early 1800’s, the time before the telegraph, telephone, or computer. If you lived in England and had a relative who had emigrated to “the Colonies” it would be weeks or months before you heard their news. Did this make the news any less vital when it finally reached you?
To get to this waterfall and tranquil pool, on the slopes of Mount Washington, I had to hike for a day and a half. This calming, peaceful scene had a profound effect on my Body-Mind-Spirit, which would have been altered or destroyed if I had received a phone call there.
I say, let yourself go. You don’t have to hike into the back country. Even if you are on a crowded beach on the Cape, it’s your choice whether or not to answer that call or check that email inbox. Let it go! Relax! Then see if you don’t come back more energized and ready for greater challenges at work, than if you had brought it all with you.
I agree completely. Having recently purchased an IPhone, i realize how much time can be “wasted” by trying to keep up. Turn it off and live in the moment
Thanks, Patty! “Live in the moment” is a great mantra!
This is how i take a vacation… no phones, no electronic games, no computer… not even for personal use. Try this and you will see how much more relaxing your vation is. Just use your GPS in vehicle to get to your destination. Take a week vacation like this, then take another week with all the toys… and you will see what i mean.