Last evening I received a very encouraging text from a colleague and friend of mine, which was his follow up to my challenge to him, to book his vacation for the coming year, right now. This particular colleague tends not take action swiftly on ideas, and so I had prodded him just several days earlier. He had just come off his first significant family vacation in many years, and so we were debriefing how much he and his family enjoyed their time together. Moreover, I am very much in this mindset at the moment, as this is the time of year that I nudge all my clients to plan both their development and their vacation for the year.
Too often people put everyone else first, including their clients. As much as I love being there for my clients, it’s just my reality that my family and I come first. Actually, one thing I notice is that I am better off for my clients and am far more productive, if I make a priority of my continued development and my vacations/time off. Just last week a client asked me for a booking in late November, and I had to ask them to choose another date, as I would be down in French Polynesia on the day they wanted my services. Guess what, I didn’t lose the business – the client chose another date for the event. But, if I had not yet booked my time away, I would have taken the booking on the suggested date and might have lost out on the best vacation time for the trip I wanted to do.
All of you have likely made some kind of fresh start this month on something that is important to you in your life and business. This is my nudge to you to make sure you are making your vacations and your own growth and development a top priority. Let me tell you that if you end up part way through this year, exhausted and exasperated and suggesting you need time off and just can’t take it, it is your fault and your fault alone. That is the hard message, but I hope you’ll take it in and reflect on it.
Cameron’s Call to Action
- How much time off and what kind of vacation(s) would you like to enjoy in 2017? If they are not yet booked, book the time off within the next seven days – no excuses.
- What is your growth and development plan for this year? You must have in place some kind of plan to formally expand and grow your knowledge and skills. If you don’t know what to focus on, here’s a suggestion…ask two or three of your closest colleagues where they think you can benefit most from learning and growth.
Cameron is an Executive Coach and Consultant specializing in business growth and workplace mental health.
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