Jon Acuff’s 5 Rules For Successful Vacationing
August 21, 2019
Eric Woodie
Marketing Director
With Labor Day approaching and people cashing in on those fleeting summer days to extend the holiday weekend, I was reminded about this little video I shot with Jon Acuff a couple of years ago. I actually review it every time I go on vacation and it helps set my focus and my expectations for both my vacation and work for when I return.
Jon Acuff’s 5 Rules For Successful Vacationing
Maybe you're about to go on vacation. Maybe you just got back from vacation, and I thought I'd share a few ideas to make the most of your vacation when you get back to work. To make sure that when you re-enter the atmosphere of work you get the most done that you can possibly get done and the transition is as smooth as it can be.
1. Don't try to leave perfectly.
There's this pressure right before you go on vacation to get everything done. You try to finish 19 projects or get to inbox zero. I hate that goal, by the way. Inbox zero is garbage and here's why: email is self-perpetuating. The more you send out, the more you empty, the more that comes back. It's like the tide so don't put a lot of pressure on yourself before you even go on a
Vacation.
2. Go fully on vacation.
If you're still checking email from the beach, taking a peek by the pool you're really not on vacation. A lot of times when we come back from vacation we wonder why don't I feel refreshed, why don't I feel better? It's because you didn't really go on vacation, you went on a pseudo vacation and that doesn't fill you up.
3. When you return, look for fires.
Look for the things that need your attention. We always talk about the urgent versus the important. Look for the important when you get back into the office and give yourself a few minutes to go okay these three things need my attention but this one right here is important. Focus on the fires.
4. Give yourself some time.
If you're gone for a week, why do you think you'll be caught up in an hour? If you're gone for a week, why do you think you'll be done by the end of the day on that first Monday back? Give yourself some time. It'll probably take you that full week to re-enter that atmosphere. Don't beat yourself up. A lot of times we return from vacation, give ourselves 15 minutes to get through all our emails and then go what's wrong I'm behind, I'm so behind. Give yourself some time.
5. Turn off your out of office message.
Have you ever had somebody leave theirs on? We leave that on like a turn signal. Have you ever been behind somebody on the highway where they turned the blinker on an hour ago and they're like I'm going to do this, I'm going to take a turn... It's annoying and you've had a co-worker where you emailed them and it said hey I'll be out of town until this date and that date was a month ago. Turn off you're out of office message. Right now you're thinking that's so simple nobody forgets to turn it off but you know they do!
So have a great vacation and I hope you enjoy work when you get back.
- Jon Acuff
To book Jon Acuff for your next event, visit his profile: https://premierespeakers.com/jon_acuff
Jon’s most recent book title is Finish. To order copies in bulk for your event, please visit BulkBooks.com.
To learn more about Eric Woodie visit ericwoodie.com