Why Your Vacation Isn’t Fixing You
Burnout is a funny little thing that shows its ugly face in many different forms. For many of us, we start planning an escape to a far away land.
We get so tired of work, chores, finances, and the never-ending list of responsibilities that we start dreaming about a vacation. You book the trip and start planning your escape from reality. You want to explore somewhere new or sit on a beach with a cold drink in your hand. The planning itself feels good. You finally have something to look forward to.
But then you start packing.
You decide to take your laptop and maybe a couple of work things to do on the plane. But you promise yourself that this time, you will unplug and actually enjoy your vacation.
“I’ll check my email, but that’s all!”
“I’ll answer this call just this one time.”
And there you go, sliding down that slippery slope. You’re trying to relax in the lounge chair by the pool, but your brain keeps wandering back to that deal. That client who needs you. Is the office doing okay, or should you check in?
I’m guilty of this, too.
On my last trip, I was still in touch with my administrator, who was telling me about all the things going wrong while I was away. There I was in Sicily, drinking wine, staring at lava flowing down Mount Etna, and thinking about my similarities to the volcano. That lava didn’t just come out of nowhere. It took a long time to get to that point.
And isn’t that exactly how burnout works?
The pressure builds. We keep going, keep pushing, and keep telling ourselves we’ll deal with it later. Until one day, we erupt. But we can make changes and release some of that pressure along the way instead of waiting until we’re ready to explode.
Time off doesn’t always equal recovery when you’re still working, worrying, and mentally carrying everything you’re trying to escape.
Then you get home and feel like you’re jumping onto a treadmill that’s already running at full speed. You might trip. You might fall. Or you might just run your heart out trying to catch up. And suddenly, you need a vacation from your vacation.
Here’s the hard truth: Burnout can’t be cured by one vacation. Sorry, it’s true. You need habits that allow you to recover consistently instead of waiting until you’re on a beach somewhere to finally exhale.
Unplug after a certain time. Block off at least one day when you don’t do work. Give yourself permission to stop being available to everyone, all the time. High achievers often have a hard time turning off their brains and their never-ending mental to-do lists. So they need to practice.
Yes. Practice.
When you practice relaxation regularly, you learn that you don’t have to escape to the mountains to find peace. You can find moments of it wherever you are. We keep telling ourselves, “I’ll rest when this is done.” But then the next thing comes up. And then the next.
There will always be something that needs your attention. That’s life. And if you’re an overachiever, you can always find one more thing to accomplish.
So you have to decide what you’re doing all this work for—and when you’re actually going to enjoy the life you’re building.
Ask yourself:
- Can I disconnect without checking work messages or feeling anxious?
- Do I feel guilty when I’m not being productive?
- Does my everyday life allow me to recover, or do I only breathe when I leave town?
I love going out to our family ranch and relaxing. But sometimes I feel like I should take my laptop, catch up on notes, watch a training, or do SOMETHING. I have this nagging feeling that I need to be productive. Maybe you know that feeling, too.
But here’s something I’m learning: Relaxing IS productive.
By incorporating tiny vacations and moments of relaxation into your everyday life, you can learn to enjoy the life you’ve worked so hard to obtain. So yes, take the vacations when you can. Go explore somewhere new. Sit on that beach. Drink that cocktail.
Just don’t wait until you’re on vacation to give yourself permission to relax.
