I’m Learning How to Take Vacation
768 million
That’s the number of unused vacation days US Travel estimates Americans leave unused each year.
When I was a teacher, the idea of taking a day off during the work week was something that filled me with absolute dread. Honestly, being out and needing a sub was usually more work than just being there, plus I tried to stockpile personal and sick time for the metaphorical baby I would need maternity leave for. Taking a day off outside of scheduled school closures just wasn’t something a lot of teachers did.
When I joined the corporate world, I had to accrue vacay at my first company, so I stockpiled everything I had for one holiday at home and maybe one or two Friday’s off throughout the year. I was also working crazy hours and trying to meet intense project deadlines, so there wasn’t really time for me to take off a week or more all at once.
Now I’m at a company with unlimited PTO (I know, such a millennial), and I literally don’t understand how to take a vacation. Instead of scheduling a solid week off, I still find myself taking a random Friday here or there, or like recently, just a Monday/Tuesday. Vacation is just kind of a concept I don’t understand. I mean, even as a child, we didn’t go on week-long family trips; it just wasn’t something that I’ve ever understood the concept of. So now, I’m slowly starting to understand how to take time off and what it actually means.
Taking a vacation does not mean you have to go somewhere expensive, elaborate, or exotic. Vacation just means unplugging from the daily grind, not just work, but the daily schedule that you find yourself tied to. Humans are creatures of habit, and habits are great, but just like picking your cuticles out of habit, if you never stop doing it you’ll find yourself with bleeding fingers and a ruined manicure.
With almost every generation prior to my own, there is this belief that people owe their employers something, that employees should give everything to a company, and hopefully, in return, they would be rewarded with promotions, retirement, bonuses, and a cool plaque at the 10, 20, and 30-year milestones. My generation has flipped the script and has demanded employers realize that they should be grateful we work for them, and in return for being good to us, we will reward them with our skills. A lot of people find this unsettling and love to say we are “lazy” or “entitled,” but last time I checked, my generation isn’t missing our kid’s soccer game for a meeting. Oh, and most of us work at least 2 jobs.
I used to walk around proud of how much vacation time I had banked. In my eyes, it showed how loyal I was, “Hey, look at me! I never take time off! That makes me a super good employee!”. In reality, it was probably the opposite. Instead of taking time to step away and recharge, I was pushing through and letting some of the day-in and day-out tasks get to me. By taking a week to step away and recharge, I would probably be a better employee.
I’m not the best vacation taker. Like I said we didn’t take them growing up, and I’m focused on some other financial goals right now, but I’m also working to reframe my thoughts on what vacation is.
I can take time off, break my routine, and vacation in my own home. I can head to Nashville for a week and stay with the fam. I mean, I really do sleep like a baby at my mom’s house. There are ways for me to unplug and reboot that don’t cost a ton of money, or any money at all.
Just like my Mac needs a hard restart every now and again, so do we. I urge you to take your time off. I understand needing to save it for a rainy day if you only have so many days, but remember, you literally can’t take it with you when you leave. Maybe you can get a nice check if you ever leave the company, but they’re just paying you for the time that’s yours anyways.
Working hard is nothing to be ashamed of. I love hard work, but remember to give yourself a break and that in the end, killing yourself for a company that would post your job the day after you died isn’t something you want to put on your tombstone anyways.
Have you struggled to take time off, or are you a pro at vacation? Let me know in the comments!
Love,
Lilly
