Vacation, All I Ever Wanted

Remembering to be inspired is hard. No matter who we are or what we do, routine sometimes takes over and completing tasks seems most important. But we all have that spark inside us that gets us jazzed up, and we can easily recapture that feeling of WOW.

You know what I am talking about. Entrepreneurs feel it in the early stages of their business. If they were not inspired, they would not and could not have taken the steps to launch their companies. We feel it in love-relationships when we first meet that someone special and cannot get enough time to just stare into their eyes.

Sometimes all it takes to discover your inner inspiration is to break the cycle of your routine and do something different.

I never used to be a big fan of extended vacations. I could not have imagined being away from the office for two weeks at a time, and for over a decade limited myself to long weekend trips or a few extra days a Christmas. The fear of 100 - 150 emails per day piling up in my inbox would give me the chills. I feared that co-workers and clients would think I was a slacker if they got "out-of-office" replies for more than a couple of days. And worst of all, I mistakenly convinced myself that I could de-compress with just a few days away.

I have now found that the Europeans have the right idea with their extended holidays (their other good idea is "the siesta", but working an afternoon nap into the American workday is not something I think will ever happen).

Taking a long trip in the summer gives one something to look forward to for months in advance, and I have found that I become more inspired about my career and other goals after having some time away.

Co-workers seem to rise to the occasion and find ways to help and support those who are traveling, not resent them (God, I hope I am right!!!! he he). Emails are easy to manage from the road, and with a small investment of less than one hour each morning, I answer 90% of all questions and delete the huge amounts of spam or other useless messages that seem to clutter the inbox constantly.

Most of all, it is at about day ten of a vacation when I really start to find the peace in my soul that I think we all need do badly in the high pressure world in which we live. What a shame it would be to never reach that peace or to have to fly home immediately upon uncovering that sense of Nirvana.

You also do not need to travel to an exotic location for your time away. A friend of mine told me about his boss who takes a 14-day at home vacation every year (there is a catchy name for doing this, but I cannot remember it..."home-cation" or "near-cation"???). He is "away" from the office in the same manner as if he was on the opposite side of the world. His family gets 100% of his time and they never leave the city where they live.

Regardless of what you do, find a way to get away, it will show you the way back to inspiration.

The 80's band The Go Go's had it right with the song "Vacation" - it is not wanting to get away, it is "having to get away". Try it, you won't regret it.

Have A Great Day.

thom