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When was the last time that you took a true vacation?  I mean something truly relaxing, unplugging from the world and simply enjoying the sights of your surroundings. A family trip with 32 of you that is constant mayhem is far from the relaxing ideal of vacation many of us hold in our mind, however it is easy to use such a get away as justification in our mind as to not genuinely pamper ourselves. After all, you got away, right? After a recent vacation, I felt this renewed feeling of refreshment heading back home. But where does this renewed focus come from? Was it just the relaxation? Or the family fun and time to be away with my wife? Here’s the #1 thing I can come up with:

Vacation is good for you because you break all of the bad habits you have. It allows you to start fresh and spend a few days planning out new challenges and habits you want to start when you get home. I don’t know about everyone reading this, but usually when I’m on vacation, all of my routines and habits go by the wayside. I stay intentional about my daily book & bible reading, but that’s about it. Whether it’s fitness and healthy eating routines or morning and bedtime routines, everything gets thrown off on vacation. I think more importantly though, all of the bad habits we get into get broken. Whether you struggle with playing too many video games, spending time on your phone, laziness, nightly ice cream, Netflix/Hulu/Disney+ binging, or any of the other hundreds of things that keep us from reaching our potential in life, your vacation helps break these habits, even just for a few days.

As humans, I believe we are very routine oriented people. Whether we realize it or not, we tend to gravitate towards patterns. Again, some could be good, and others not so good. I think routines are very important, especially to establish a solid morning and bedtime routine. But I think it’s safe to say that for most of us our routine’s aren’t always the ones leading us to the path of the life we’ve always wanted. I’m 110% guilty of this at times just to clarify. Watching a couple of episodes of a favorite TV show sometimes turns into hours unintentionally spent watching it over the next couples of weeks. I don’t make a conscious decision to replace 12 hours of my productive time in pursuit of my goals and dreams with 12 hours of TV watching, but it’s funny how it just happens that way without us realizing it.

Enter your vacation to save the day! Often, we don’t just pick up one or two bad habits and routines. It tends to snowball into 3,4 or 5 other smaller ones too. Simply by getting away and breaking all your routines can help you refocus when you get home and things return to normal. Vacations are a great time to evaluate what routines and habits are working well for you and which ones you need to improve on. I strongly suggest spending a day or two planning out the things you would like to change and how you can accomplish them so that you are prepared when you get home to start implementing.

I encourage everyone to get away at least 2-3 times a year, even if it’s just for a few days at a time, or somewhere near enough to drive to. It doesn’t have to be flying to Florida or taking a huge family vacation. A good friend of mine and top realtor in the St. Louis area, Caleb Davis, said a few years back on our podcast episode that he tries to take a couple of days away every month. He said in doing so, he can stay more focused and productive the rest of the month and doesn’t mind long days as much when he has something to always look forward to.

So, here’s your excuse to take a vacation. Many people feel guilty taking time off or feel like they can’t, but I challenge you to try it. It could just be the best thing you do to ensure a productive next year. After all, aren’t you using your business to serve your life? Enjoy it!

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