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Time off for good behavior
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Posted by editor Fri Jun 16, 2006 16:54:04 PDT
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0 responses 0 comments Seems incredible, but we’re at summer again.

The older kids from college have been home for a while now. At least the ones who come back summers.

The younger kids are now happily embarked on summer vacation. Our freshly graduated high school seniors now have one last summer before commencement of a whole brand new phase of life.

So, when was the last time you had an extended period away from work. Most of us know from school days that three months off is a bit much. We were reminded of that every time one of our offspring moaned, “There’s nothing to do.”

Truth is, there’s always something to do with our leisure time. It just doesn’t happen without us working at it. Now there’s an oxymoron for you…

Now so many of us have gotten so much in to work that we’ve forgotten how to take time off — time for vacations, getaways and just plain getting out of Dodge.
Like most self-employed, my vocation came with no human benefits policy. You go into work for yourself so you can be your own boss. Then you find out you’re working for the worst boss in the world — yourself.

This modern day Scrooge, also known as You, has a policy that goes back to the sweatshop days. He can’t afford health insurance for you. He has no 401k plan for you. There are no paid sick days or paid holidays. So it comes as no surprise there are no vacation days in your benefits portfolio either.

I bought into this plan for way too many years. No more. All machines run better with regular rest. People get in the overdraft mode, stressed and listless. They’ve left no time for recharging spent batteries.

But I changed. At first, I checked out for a half day. Then, when I found it didn’t destroy the business, I checked out for a whole day, of all things. Before you know it, I was doing extended weekends.

Then I got crazy. I took a whole 16 days away from the office. The business survived. All those years of thinking I was indispensable to the business were now revealed for being completely wrong.

I’ve found I work better when I don’t work all the time. For all of those who expected me to be a little brighter than this, I apologize. The truth of the matter is simply that we most often look the most basic truths in life looking for the deep things of life (which are really the simple things of life.)

And it’s not just entrepreneurs who have a hard time with time away from the business. Most recent surveys paint a picture of employees who pass up accumulated vacation time, even when there are corporate policies of “use it or lose it.”

Life needs balance. You should enjoy your work. You should also enjoy your play.
So this summer, make some time for play.

• Go to the lake and rent a jet ski.

• Go to Mammoth and ride a bike downhill.

• Head to the central coast to walk along the beach with your spouse and your dog Spot.

• Hang out in Margaritaville.

• Take a long boat ride and discover some hidden fjords along the Alaskan coastline.

• Go straight to San Diego and visit all the museums in Balboa Park by day and watch the Padres play at Petco for a whole home series.

• Then come back, revitalized and raring to go, because work’s not a drag when it’s sandwiched in between creative play.

• Paydays are good. Especially when they come with playdays.

Mark Moore is a Chartered Financial Consultant with Q4 Insurance & Financial Services, Inc. Securities and Advisory Services offered through Commonwealth Financial Network, Member NASD/SIPC. Your feedback is valued. Email Mark at MarkM@Q4Financial.net.

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