Extolling the Value of a Two-Week Vacation (Away From Work)

Almost seventeen years ago, my wife and I started what is now Good Leadership. An important step was establishing an Advisory Board to guide us through the whitewater of starting a business from zero. I was 46 years old. 

Very early into the startup phase, one of those advisors made me attend a meeting of the Minnesota Entrepreneur Organization, known as EO. The meeting speaker talked about how the most successful founders build strategies to manage the energy required by a startup. What I remember most is this:  Time off for rest is not a reward for good work – it’s required for good work.  

My initial thought: Who has time for rest?

The Wisdom of Aging

I thought about that while on the two-week vacation I just returned from. The acquired wisdom is that one-week of vacations are more “time off” than “rest.”  Just one week doesn’t really allow for a wind-down. Worse yet, I seem to pack so much into that week that it feels like more of a wind-up. Protecting a second week allows for some slow down time that provides restorative rest. 

Staycation is the Best Rest

My wife Melinda and I have taken 2 and 3-week vacations before – but they always involved heavy duty travel. We were living examples of the phrase: I need a vacation to recover from my vacation! 

This was my very first time taking two weeks off to NOT travel -a “staycation.” The first week at home I remodeled and super-cleaned our garage. The second week I spent  “up at the lake” at the family cabin in Wisconsin – our 36th year! The agenda included lots of time with our adult kids and our five grandchildren and reconnecting with the larger family. There was some golf, some water sports, some pull tabs and lots of beer and sunscreen. 

There were no airplane flights or conference calls. No need to shave. It was a true vacation, with rest to prepare for good work!

Strengthening My Seven Fs

Our firm, Good Leadership, espouses the wisdom of Blending the Seven Fs: faith, family, finances, fitness, friends, fun and future. Time off – specifically a two-week vacation – does wonders for strengthening all of the Seven Fs. And now, at age 63, I am realizing what the EO speaker promoted 16 years ago: Rest is not the opposite of productivity. It’s one of the main ingredients. 

The reality check? I’ve been in the workforce long enough to accumulate enough vacation days to take a two-week vacation. I know I’m fortunate. But I’m not apologetic. Rather, I’d appreciate knowing you are thinking about (dreaming about?) how you could manage a two-week vacation for yourself. 

Please share with me: have you ever taken a two-week vacation for rest?