“Americans Are Still Terrible at Taking Vacations” reads a headline in a recent Fortune magazine. When I read this, it made me laugh a bit. However, this is no laughing matter. The article goes on to report that in 2016, Americans sacrificed approximately 662 million vacation days. The report concludes that “while more than half of employees forfeited paid time off at year’s end, some bright spots in the survey results hint that Americans may be in the process of reversing their bad vacation habits.”

This is a good thing, because it has been found that executives who don’t take vacation time are less productive, have fewer innovative thoughts and are more likely to have strained relationships with their employees. The research goes on to say, “CEOs, just like any other American worker, need vacation time to unplug too. It will help inspire and motivate you, as well as help you gain new perspectives and become stronger at task management.”

The Many Benefits of Time Away

There are many other benefits to taking a well deserved vacation, including:

1) Rest and Relaxation. We all know that sleep is vital to our health and vitality. Being constantly exhausted – like many of us are while working insane hours to keep our business on track – can lead to slower cognitive thinking, decision making, and overall alertness.

2) Vacations, especially when taken with a big dose of Mother Nature, help us focus. A study performed at the University of Michigan shows that, while any amount of walking is good for you, individuals who walked through a nature-filled arboretum scored higher on a cognitive test than their counterparts who walked through the busy street of Ann Arbor. Being in nature has a restorative property.

3) Breaking out of the mold brings a new perspective to problems and helps with creative thinking. How many times have you had an “ah-ha” moment when you least expect it? The novelty of experiencing a new location and culture may help you solve known (and perhaps unknown) challenges.

4) Remember, you can also take a mini vacation at home.  It is incredibly important for productivity to take time to escape your everyday life.  But you really must escape; don’t spend your time glancing at mobile devices or “checking in” with employees or co-workers.

Putting Trust in Your Employees

I find that the most important benefit of taking a vacation is that, when you step away from the office, you are putting trust in your employees. If you have hired the correct senior leaders and provided the resources and training needed, they should be able to step in and fill your shoes. You must trust that they are going to stay the course and keep things running properly. It also helps the upper level employees to gain confidence in their own abilities and decision-making skills.

So go ahead and plan that summer vacation. The benefits far outweigh the risks.

If you have questions or interest in engaging a business coach to help you build a solid foundation, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me. I would be happy to discuss your objectives, and see if we can work together to achieve them.