Tyler Day on the Art of the Working Vacation
When you’re a full-time internet marketer, one of the perks is being able to travel while working on vacation anywhere in the world.
Recently, I have found myself traveling every single month, whether it be for work, or just for vacation time to refocus myself. Traveling to new places is an important facet of the human experience.
It is in our nature to explore new areas and experience new things.
Traveling is an incredibly useful way to rejuvenate your creative thinking, and create new neural pathways within your brain, literally making you smarter!
In this post I’m going to share a handful of tips that I have learned that have helped me while working on vacation over the years.
Working on Vacation: Is It Possible?
Many times when people go on vacation, they set too many rules for themselves that are unreasonable.
No phones, no wifi, no computer, etc.
Whenever I travel somewhere, I do not enjoy being completely unplugged. Having a “no work” policy during vacation time can be very counter-intuitive for me.
It becomes stressful knowing that there are multiple tasks that need completing when you return, which are currently making zero progress while you are traveling. The thought of being overburdened with work when you return will be even more stressful than if you just took a little time each day to complete important tasks.
You may return from vacation feeling even more stressed than when you left by you returning to an enormous “to-do” list.
I am a huge proponent of the ‘working vacation.’
For me, knowing that I am traveling while still getting things done is an amazing feeling. When you dedicate a set amount of time each day to completing important tasks, it frees up your mind for the rest of the day to focus on your rest and relaxation.
You won’t be overthinking about your workload and what needs to be done when you get back because you have already made progress on it that day. When you get things done while traveling, it allows you to travel more frequently, which is a win-win.
Would you rather take 1-2 trips a year where you completely “un-plug” or travel every single month while still maintaining and growing your business?
Productivity Hacks
While traveling, it is important to focus on only the most essential tasks within your business. This means no pointless calls, emails, and Skype messages – those can wait.
You need to manage the expectations of colleagues and clients that you have regular contact with, so they know what they can expect during your vacation time
Let people know that you are traveling and to expect not to hear from you for X amount of time. Then, if you do choose to respond to them it will be unexpected.
Under promise, over-deliver.
Set goals and decide on a daily plan, including what you want to accomplish. While I am traveling I like to work for about 2-hours per day.
However, what I kept finding was that since that time frame is so small, I am able to accomplish what would normally take 4 hours in half the time.
Working on vacation actually boosted my productivity.
Forget about social media while you are traveling, turn off Facebook, sign out of Snap/IG and Skype. Turn OFF your phone.
You would be surprised by how much you can get done when you remove outside distractions. You should challenge yourself to see how much you can get done in a small 2 hour time frame every day. Decide how you want to allocate that time, it could be one hour in the morning and one hour at night, or four 30 minute sessions throughout the day.
The rest of the day will be yours to go anywhere and do anything you want!
Most importantly, you must put all work aside and enjoy your surroundings outside of your daily time limit. Set an alarm for the amount of time you want to work and when the alarm goes off slam your computer shut and leave your hotel/Airbnb and go enjoy your surroundings.
I promise you that mastering the art of working on vacation will allow you to travel much more frequently and have much more fulfilling experiences, minus the stress of a massive “to do” list when you return.
Do you take your work with you on vacation, or do you prefer to completely remove yourself from real life for a while? Let me know in the comments below, and share any working vacation hacks you have learned along the way.
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