Who couldn’t use more time off? Most jobs don’t offer employees many personal and vacation days. As a result, a lot of us feel like we aren’t getting the time to relax and recharge that we really need. Of course we all know it’s important to have time off to keep our creative energy up, as well as to fight stress. But can taking vacations actually make you money?
According to one survey, the answer may be yes. While people who took less than 10 vacation days a year had a 34.6% chance of getting a raise or bonus, those who took more than 10 days had a 65.4% chance. So those who took more time off for vacation actually saw an increased bottom line.
Many companies have a culture where, while paid vacation and personal days are part of the benefits package, employees feel they should not use them. In fact, in 2015, 55% of Americans did not use all their vacation days. That’s a whole lot of ‘keep your nose to the grindstone’ mentality. Logic says that most people choose not to take their vacation days because they think it will either cost them productivity or chances at promotion. Yet, as we saw from the earlier survey, taking a vacation may actually lead to better raises and bonuses.
Vacations can pay off in other ways as well. One of the keys to a good vacation is actually having a time to relax and release the stress of work. So if you’re planning an action packed trip to a theme park with all the kids where you’ll be on-the-go from sun rise to sundown, you may not see the same benefits that you would from a more nature-centric vacation where you’re able to spend more time outdoors focusing on a less frenetic pace.
It’s also important to try to take a real break from the office when you’re taking vacation time. That means logging off of slack, choosing not to check email, maybe not reading the business section of the paper, and generally just checking out of your work mindset. It’s not easy to do this in the age of smartphones, but it is an important step in making sure that your vacation actually has a positive impact on your stress levels.
Another thing to keep in mind is that you won’t get your time back later. You’ll never be as young as you are now, and if you have kids, they’ll never be this young again either. For your own well being, it’s a good idea to take advantage of those precious moments to stop and smell the roses far away from the maddening pace of office life. Even if you’re not sure you’ll see an advantage to your bottom line, your work/life balance of accounts will probably make your vacation time completely worthwhile.
