How to Have a Productive Day Even When You’re on Vacation

Have a More Productive Day Even When You’re on Vacation

What if you need to squeeze some work in while you’re on vacation or holiday? Here are our tips on how to have a productive day even when you’re on vacation.

What if you could kick back and relax while still getting work done?

It sounds impossible. However, it can be easy to have a productive day while you are on your vacation.

Read on to discover how to achieve a work/life balance while also enjoying rest and relaxation.

Productive Day Secrets

To truly be productive during your break, you have to kick things off before your vacation. This means designating another trusted employee to take care of certain matters while you are away.

Set up an automated response for those who email you. And modify your voicemail message to direct callers to the employee who is handling your office work.

The idea here is simple. By making sure everything at the office is taken care of, you can give any projects you bring with you the full attention they deserve.

Read on to discover all of the ways you can squeeze in some work while enjoying your vacation!

Set a Firm Schedule

If you must work during a vacation, it’s important to set a specific schedule. This schedule benefits both you and anyone who tries to contact you.

Schedule certain times and days that you can be contacted. This lets you still mentally relax at other times so you can enjoy your time off.

The schedule also helps remind you to have fun. By containing your productive time, you can make the most of the rest of your vacation.

Avoid the Email

Part of balancing the schedule you set means learning to selectively ignore your email. This is often difficult for very productive people.

It’s tempting to respond to every notification, text, and email you receive. However, this sends the message that you are still working a full schedule every day.

Instead, make sure your schedule includes a block of time to respond to email. And be sure to let your boss and colleagues know what this window of time is so you aren’t keeping them waiting.

Trying to enjoy your vacation while being constantly alert for messages is likely to burn you out. However, giving yourself a specific window to read and respond to messages helps you be alert and productive.

Keep It Simple

One of the biggest secrets to a productive day on vacation is choosing the right tasks to work on. These tasks should be simple and straightforward.

Your vacation is not the right time to take on a major project. If anything major should come up, this is why you have designated someone at the office to help take care of it.

Setting these bite-sized daily goals also helps you to stay motivated. Instead of focusing on all of the major work that you are missing out on, you can celebrate all of the minor tasks that you are taking care of while on vacation.

Don’t Get Away From It All

Depending on the nature of your work, you may need to be near areas offering printing services as well as post offices. Being too far away from such services means you won’t be able to get any work done.

You can compromise by staying somewhere that is tranquil but still close to the services you need. Hotels like Ingenia Holidays, for instance, is just a short drive away from a more metropolitan shopping area.

It’s easy to relax at hotels like this, or drive to the nearby beach. However, if you need to have a productive day, you are just minutes away from the access and businesses that you’ll need.

Check Your Connection

It’s almost impossible to get anything productive done without a good internet connection. Unfortunately, hotel wi-fi on your vacation may be unreliable.

There are ways to fix this issue. Choose a hotel that offers a direct internet connection via ethernet cable. This service may cost extra, but it’s better than relying on the wi-fi.

You can also turn your phone into a wi-fi hotspot for your laptop. Different cell phone carriers offer monthly plans for this, or you can find pay-as-you-go options and just buy them when you’re traveling.

Prioritize Emergencies

Even if you designate a co-worker to handle office duties and you set a strict schedule, emergencies may still happen. These may require your immediate attention.

If you check your email in the afternoon and see something urgent has arisen, try to take care of it immediately. There are two essential reasons to do this.

First, do it for your peace of mind. It’s difficult to enjoy your vacation knowing that things may be unraveling back at the office.

Second, do it for the sake of your workplace. If you didn’t care about the business doing well, you wouldn’t be trying to have a productive day while vacationing!

Laptop Off, Brain On

Even employers like the idea of you going on vacation. This is because you will come back energized and filled with fresh ideas.

Don’t wait until you come back to write down those fresh ideas. Instead, write them down as they occur to you on your vacation.

Go old school and write your notes and ideas down on a notepad. This helps you remember the idea more vividly. It also helps you fight the temptation to stay on your cell phone or laptop too long after you have typed out the idea.

Ultimately, you’ll come back to the office with many exciting new ideas. Once your boss sees them, maybe they’ll send you on vacation again very soon!

The Bottom Line

It can be difficult to balance having a productive day and having a relaxing day during your vacation. However, doing so is a great way to make sure you and your business never top reaching for greatness.

Every business professional knows they need some advice from time to time. Mentors can help us to find strengths that we never even knew we had.

At Small Business Brief, we can be that mentor for you. To find out how to transform your business future, come check out our business blog today!