As we head into a three-day weekend, and the unofficial kick-off to summer, it’s important to recognize that this brief break won’t save you from burnout. A short vacation is not a magic cure for how you feel about your job. If you’re seeking to enjoy life, gain work-life balance, and achieve career satisfaction without stress, you’re in the right place. Today’s episode will provide tactical advice to help you manage burnout effectively, especially if you often find yourself stressed on vacation.
The Role of Vacation in Managing Stress
Vacation is beneficial but not a standalone solution for burnout. Here’s why a vacation is helpful:
Boosts Productivity: Time off can increase your efficiency and effectiveness at work.
Enhances Relationships: Strengthens bonds with loved ones and improves social connections.
Fosters Creativity: Time away from work can inspire new ideas and perspectives.
Improves Job Satisfaction: Returning from a break refreshed can lead to greater job satisfaction.
Supports Personal Growth: Offers time to reflect and grow personally.
Despite these benefits, vacation alone cannot heal burnout. It’s crucial to understand that while vacation can alleviate stress temporarily, it doesn’t address the root causes of burnout. For tips on how to enjoy your vacation without feeling guilty, check out our detailed guide on stress-free vacationing.
Research on Vacation and Burnout
Studies show that vacations of at least four days can significantly reduce stress, but longer vacations have stronger benefits. A short break might not be enough to unwind fully, emphasizing the need for more extended time off. Seth Godin wisely said, "Instead of wondering when your next vacation is, maybe you should set up a life that you don’t need to escape from."
Limitations of Vacation in Addressing Burnout
In the billable hour life, vacations come with costs. Making up time before and after, dealing with an overflowing inbox, and feeling guilt and pressure can negate the benefits. For many, a vacation with family can be more exhausting than restful. This is why merely taking time off isn’t sufficient to combat burnout.
Understanding how your mindset affects your career choices is crucial. Developing a positive mindset can help you make the right decisions and maintain a healthy work-life balance. For more information, read our article on how your mindset influences your career success.
Effective Strategies to Manage Burnout and Vacation Stress
Take Solo PTO Days Quarterly: Dedicate one day each quarter just for yourself. Engage in activities that you enjoy and find relaxing. This can be a powerful step in overcoming burnout and discovering how to be your best self.
Improve Time Management: Learn to detach and delegate tasks to avoid overburdening yourself.
Adopt a Burnout Recovery Strategy: Beyond vacation, implement daily and weekly practices that support your mental and emotional well-being. These strategies are key to overcoming burnout and achieving sustainable work-life balance.
Transform Your Work-Life Balance Today
As you approach this three-day weekend, remember that a short break is just one tool in managing burnout, but it's not the ONLY tool or the panacea to cure burnout. Use this time to reflect on how you can incorporate more balance and relaxation into your routine. I look forward to connecting with you and helping you achieve the work-life harmony you deserve. Have a restful weekend, and I’ll see you in the next episode.
Join my newsletter designed for women in accounting, law, and consulting. Each week, you'll receive practical tips and advice to help you maintain work-life balance all year round. While vacations are helpful, true balance comes from daily habits and intentional effort. Subscribe now and I'll walk you each step of the way.
What You'll Learn from this Episode:
How Vacation Can Help Manage Stress
Vacation Benefits and Limitations
Key Strategies for Burnout Recovery
Research Insight on Vacation and Burnout
Watch the Full Episode:
Full Episode Transcript:
Hello and welcome to Billable-Hour Burnout. Today's episode is perfectly timed as we're about to enter a three-day weekend. Now I have some good news and some bad news. The three-day weekend is here, but it's not going to save you.
A three-day weekend won't change how you feel about your job on Tuesday. It won't give you a real reprieve because you've likely overcommitted yourself. It's not going to heal your burnout. Three days off isn't enough. Now let me welcome you to the show.
If you're new to Billable-Hour Burnout, welcome. This is the place for helpful tactical advice that helps you have the career of your dreams without stress or overwhelm. If you want to enjoy your life, make more, have meaning, feel more confident, and find ease in your day-to-day, you're in the right place.
You want work-life balance. You want to have it all without burning out. My name is Lauren Baptiste, former big four auditor and tax regulatory consultant turned life coach and burnout coach. You're listening to Billable Hour Burnout. On this show, I share simple tactical advice to help you tackle anything related to mindset and the things getting in the way of having the life you want. This content is catered specifically to modern women in accounting, consulting, or law.
May 23rd. I want to start by sharing a client success story. This one's anonymous as I'm currently working with this client. She said, "I am definitely a work in progress and I'm feeling better about being more realistic and not carrying guilt when I fall short. I appreciated your ability to balance support and push me when I needed it." We communicate on an app called Signal, sharing what's going well, what's not, and what needs to change. We're all works in progress, looking for something better with balance.
May is mental health awareness month. It's a fun month in my business. Women in the tax space might get a reprieve and realize things feel good but not great. Many women are coming to me now. I'm celebrating two new clients and five renewals over the past 30 days. Clients want more, they want to go farther, do it faster, and have more fun.
My peonies are growing. They don't feel like marshmallows yet, but I see color coming up. I hope to show them to you before I head to Europe on vacation next month. I'll be going to a yoga retreat in Italy and then to Barcelona with my best friend and husband for a Formula One Grand Prix. Speaking of vacation, I'm pumped, but I want to get right into the content because vacation is good, but it's not everything.
Let's start with why a vacation is helpful. Many of you tell me you haven't taken a vacation in about two years. We have to change that. A vacation boosts productivity, enhances relationships with loved ones, strengthens bonds with family, boosts creativity, and improves job satisfaction. Employers give vacation because it's beneficial. You come back refreshed, focused, and it fosters personal growth.
A study said for every 10 days of vacation leave, depression in women lowered by 29%. Yes, vacation is valuable, but it doesn't heal burnout. Depression isn't burnout. Time off helps, but it's not enough. Studies show the effects of vacation start after four days off. Short-term vacations can reduce stress, but longer vacations have stronger benefits. You need at least four nights to make it feel like a vacation. It takes time to unwind and relax.
Seth Godin says, "Instead of wondering when your next vacation is, maybe you should set up a life that you don’t need to escape from."
Vacations help heal stress, but they do not heal burnout. There are costs to taking vacation: making up time before and after, not having enough resources to delegate work, an inbox full of emails, and the guilt and pressure of leaving. This is why accountants, attorneys, and consultants don't take vacations. A vacation with family is not a vacation; it's barely a break. You end up needing a vacation from your vacation, feeling tired and overwhelmed. Sabbaticals are similar. Time away isn't enough if you don't know how to recover from burnout.
If time away were enough, we wouldn't have nearly 40% of us experiencing burnout. Time away from the office can't be the only burnout recovery strategy. It's helpful but not enough.
When women experience significant burnout, I ask, "When's the last time you took a day off?" If it's been a few months, burnout symptoms will amplify. You need a full week off at least once a year, ideally two to three times.
Ask yourself, "When's the last time you took a real vacation?" If you have to think hard, book one ASAP. It doesn't have to be luxurious. A staycation can work if you avoid creating work for yourself at home.
I recommend taking solo PTO days quarterly. A day off just for you, not with family, where you can do something you love. It gives you something to look forward to and actual happiness when you do it.
Time management, booking vacations, and taking days off are valuable but won't heal your burnout. You need to consider how to get more done without doing more. This is why I'm doing my webinar next Thursday, the 30th at 3 PM Eastern. I'll teach you how to detach, delegate, do less, and enjoy more. Join me for "How to Accomplish More Without Doing More."
In summary, taking time off, making a solo day, and working on how to do it better and enjoy it more are key. I teach my clients to manage negative thoughts, uncomfortable feelings, and avoidant actions holding them back from using PTO. I help create a vacation strategy to use vacation without guilt, enjoy it while away, and come back refreshed.
On a scale of 1 to 10, how ready for more were you when you came back from your last vacation? If it wasn't 5 or higher, you should join my webinar.
My gift to each of you is to have the best summer you've had in years. Even if you have a deadline, you can still have a great summer and work a lot. It's not one or the other.
Thank you for listening to today's episode of Billable-Hour Burnout. Drop a comment if you liked this. If you watch the replay, hit #Replay in your comments. Find me on Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, YouTube, or wherever you hang.
Keep me posted on your three-day weekend. Book more time off. Visit me on Instagram at my new handle, @theLaurenBaptiste. Find me on LinkedIn and Facebook. For more information about my coaching program and how to take a guilt-free vacation, visit www.acheloawellness.com. Thank you for listening. Each episode is getting easier and more relevant because of your comments. Tell me what you want to hear next. Have the best three-day weekend. May it be one step closer to feeling more restful, calm, and confident in how you do things. Talk to you soon. Bye.