Boss’s Guide to an (Almost) Worry-free Vacation

by Tony Mayo | For Business Owners, For Fun

Here’s an article I had published as the cover story of the August 1997, issue of Small Business News. My executive coaching clients still find it useful.

I remember when I sold my first business and got a “real job.” A “real” job is the kind with set hours, limited responsibilities, and weekends off.

Weekends off! What an alien concept. Once I got used to the idea of free time and stopped bringing “special projects” and extra reading home, I noticed something very odd. I got a whole lot more done on the Mondays after a relaxing weekend than I had after struggling with work for seven (or seventy) straight days. Abe Lincoln is said to have declared that if he had eight hours to cut down a tree, he would spend four hours sharpening his saw. Vacation is for sharpening your most important tool: yourself.

 

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Long-term Vacation Planning:

Grow your staff

I once asked the President of a division of a public company, “How do you account for your great success at such a young age?” After a moment’s reflection, he (more…)