Be Prepared For Vacation [Infographic]

Bethany Emerson https://www.quill.com 1m 367 #vacation

The views of this article are the perspective of the author and may not be reflective of Confessions of the Professions.

Will You Take A Vacation This Year?

Whether you love a beach, museums, or mountains, vacations are a great chance to refresh and restore—and get that much-needed break from the daily work grind. Unfortunately, far too many people are taking far too little time off in order to reset their work lives. In fact, about half of all Americans don’t take all the time off that they earned—meaning they just lose this valuable benefit. And it’s not just a few days here and there: The total amount of time “gifted” back to workplaces exceeds 169 million days.

Even for those people who actually do schedule time out of the office, all too often they’re checking in on work while they’re officially off the clock. In fact, nearly two-thirds of people will check in with work, and if you’re younger you’re likely to be checking in almost every day. The end result? A vacation that’s not really a vacation.

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It doesn’t have to be like this, though. Some preplanning—not the day before a vacation, but well in advance—can be the best tool you can use in order to alleviate any pull to work while you’re out. For example, give people you work with and your manager a good, long notice, with written description of projects and deadlines that might come up while you’re gone. Change the message on your email and voicemail, too, giving people a heads-up about when you’ll be gone and who they can direct questions too in your absence.

Want more ideas to prep for vacation—and not work? Check out this infographic.