by Nicole K. Webb | Featured Contributor
Have you ever said to yourself, “I need a vacation!” and then seconds later, talk yourself out of it? It’s not the right time or you have too much work to get done?
Many professionals don’t take vacations because of fear of falling behind and jeopardizing their employment. However, many fail to realize that the reason they are falling behind in the first place is often due to working ineffectively and failing to be strategic. Instead of avoiding a vacation, using one to analyze and assess what could be done differently could actually be more effective.
According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, a vacation is a period of time that a person spends away from home, school, or business, usually in order to relax or travel. It’s not uncommon for individuals to come up with their most creative ideas when they are relaxed and not intentionally working to create. This is why most major companies and organizations afford their employees paid time off (PTO). They want their employees to be more motivated and creative at work once they return. This is also why employees return to work more refreshed and empowered than they were before they left.
Here are a few more benefits to taking a vacation:
- You get the opportunity to decompress and disconnect from your daily work routine.
- You decrease your chances of experiencing burnout.
- You get the opportunity to catch up with family and friends whom you don’t typically have time for when you’re working.
- You get the opportunity to take care of your personal business endeavors (e.g. banking) during the work week instead of waiting for the weekend which saves you time and energy.
I strongly encourage that all career professionals take a vacation in order to break from their careers and gain clarity in their professional and personal lives. This will help to reduce stress, anxiety and unhealthy feelings that are detrimental for an individual’s mental and physical well being. Whether you take a vacation to relax at home or travel to a designated destination, the overall goal is to take time to step away. Make the decision to give yourself a break.
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Nicole K. Webb is a former “Perfect Patty” who was committed to doing everything by the book because of her fear of failure. However, in 2012 she faced some life-changing decisions that revealed to her that although you can try your best to do things perfectly, it’s impossible to be perfect at everything. For the first time in Nicole’s career, she struggled with a job in which she was not a good fit and was able to recognize this for herself. Nicole decided to resign from what many would consider a dream job in human resources in order to take time to figure out what to do next.
After being unemployed for two months, she found herself a great career opportunity in the human resources field. She also began to follow her dream of becoming a business owner. She opened her very own human resource consulting and career coaching business, NK WEBB GROUP LLC. Since launching her business, she has authored The Workplace Playbook: Strategies to Help New Employees Win In Their Careers.
Nicole has over 10 years of experience in human resources. She has an MBA from University of Baltimore and a BA from Coppin State University.
