“Vacation: I’m Going to…”

Vacation time is quickly approaching. I’ve heard people say “they can’t wait to go on vacation” or “when they go on vacation they are not going to do….” or “they are going to do….”. A lot of times we just want to get away from
the mundane things of life and do something different, especially from the pressures of our dental office. This is what we say but actually it is often times the opposite of what we do.

I have noticed that often times the best time on our family vacation is the first 36-48 hours because “I’m out of the routine”. It is different and gives me the opportunity to “relax” and not do the routine things of life. The problem I have is that I typically take a 7-10 day vacation and insidiously start thinking about all the headaches I’ll face on returning to work early in the vacation. You know, the mail, the staff, the difficult patients, etc., start to sneak into my vacation starting about day 3-5 and it tends to place me back at work in thought and tends to ruin the last 5-7 days of my actual vacation. Is it me or do you have some of the same thoughts? I don’t know, but I suspect I am not alone.

We as small businesses tend to obsess on “keeping the ship going” even when we are away. I think for me personally, I have to remember what vacation really should be; i.e., a time of renewal, recreation, and to seek your passions in life. This may be a time where you take on a new hobby, a time for family exploration time, a time for you and your spouse to renew your relationship or financial goals, etc.

I don’t have a magical solution on how not to think about your “stuff back home” while on vacation except to say that having trust and faith in God can sustain one for a life time. We need to take time for ourselves so that we keep our batteries charged, our spirit renewed, and our bodies refreshed in order to live a fulfilled life. Hope your Summer is filled with rest and wonderment!