The world is becoming a smaller and smaller place as advances in technology grow stronger.
In our hyper-connected world, working whilst on holiday has become an easier option for many people.
But even if you can now work from anywhere, should you? I did recently and found it so productive I will be doing it again.
For some, a holiday is an opportunity to completely switch off, unwind and recharge the batteries. However, for me I found it energising to keep on top of emails, make calls and keep on top of my business by the pool or hotel balcony.
Before people come back with counterarguments stating how a holiday helps keep good health intact, makes you more productive and prevents burnout I am stating this approach is not for everyone.
There are a couple of benefits I found to keeping on top of my business whilst on holiday and the main one was, I am offering a service that my competition is not, which is vital in the recruitment world. If other recruitment agencies switch off and are uncontactable for weeks at a time it provides me with an opportunity to assist and offer solutions to customers instead!!
Another major reason why I keep working whilst on holiday is that it allows me to play catch-up on other areas of my IFS business. It allows me to clear my inbox, complete any outstanding admin and prepare for my return to the office so I can hit the ground running.
As the old cliché goes, it is important to ‘work smarter and not harder’. Working on the premise that if you keep going for hours on end you will reap the rewards might seem logical, but it’s not sustainable. I found I was spending a few hours in the morning on the laptop, whilst my wife and two sons remained asleep and a few hours throughout the day whilst activities were being completed by the pool or my children took an afternoon nap.
In fact, doing this made me appreciate the holiday more and ensured my family had my full attention for the core of the day.
If this approach does not work for you then I appreciate this, as I am aware there are several counter-arguments to my approach including taking a break lowers stress, makes you more productive in the long run and improves your mental well-being, however, this approach does not work for me and the industry I specialise in.
New research states that half of UK employees regularly do not take all their annual leave (recruitment company Glassdoor reveals that the average UK employee sacrifices 6.5 days of their holiday entitlement each year through fear of being out of the office).
The reality is that holidays matter and I would never advocate sacrificing or avoiding holidays. However, in order for me to be successful and maintain strong relationships with my customers and candidates, I allow myself time to give up pieces of my holidays in order to thrive.
Working on the holidays isn’t nearly as bad as people make it out to be if you manage the situation correctly.
No one wants burnout – it is precisely why holidays exist in companies but by mixing work and play I am performing better and as an entrepreneur, this approach is worth it!!
Being my own boss, being in charge of my own earnings and working on the IFS market whilst on holiday adds up to better perks and higher earnings, which allow me to go on holiday in the first place and allow me opportunities to strive in my career.
Thanks for reading and it would be great to hear your thoughts on the subject.
