Why Taking a Vacation is Essential for Your Well-Being

Summer travel plans have been upended, but that doesn’t mean you should stay home.

‍

I believe that in these stressful times, it’s more important than ever to get away.

‍

Many people want to avoid air travel right now, and overseas trips are off the menu. While these traditional “exciting” trips are harder to make right now, there are plenty of great experiences to be found close to home.

‍

America is a vast land full of breathtaking beauty. I recently did an RV trip with my family to America’s West. It was incredible to see the South Dakota Badlands, Jackson Hole, and picturesque scenery in between.

‍

If not for the pandemic, we’d likely have taken a different kind of family trip. No matter. If anything, spending so much time together meant more great memories and greater connectedness. I’m really glad we did this trip.

‍

It’s not even necessary to seek out famous locations. There are beautiful hills, lakes, forests, and other destinations reachable from most anywhere in the US.

‍

A simple change of scenery is often enough to start recharging our batteries. If we’re getting closer to nature, that works even better. These days, many people don’t even need to take vacation time to make it happen.

‍

The coronavirus has normalized remote work in a big way. For anybody who has been working from home for the last few months, there should be little difference between that and working from a hotel, cabin, RV, or anywhere else with internet.

‍

As an employer, I want my colleagues healthy, rested, and at their best. Vacation is a big part of that. And from another perspective, accumulated vacation time is something many company managers want to avoid. It’s a concern for some companies when employees save up vacation days and then leave at the same time.

‍

Many things have changed in this pandemic, and other things haven’t changed at all. We still need downtime and to explore new places. Even this year, yes, you should take a vacation.

‍