How to Take Time Off as an Entrepreneur

It’s time for a vacation! I see you out there hustling and making moves in your business. You go, girl! You are crushing the game. Now, it’s time to take a few days off and rest. Vacation is deserved and beneficial to your mental health and business. 

For some reason, taking a vacation as an entrepreneur is uncomfortable. I struggled with it for a long time. I felt the need to control every aspect of my business and didn’t think I could take vacation time. I thought my business would crumble or something!

Guess what. It didn’t. I take vacations and come back to everything just as it was before I left. How does that happen? I prepare ahead of time to take time off. In this blog, I’ll share exactly what I do before going on vacation. I hope it helps you when you’re ready for a vacation!

Benefits of Vacation for Entrepreneurs

Business owners tend to prioritize working over leisure time. We’re all guilty of it at some level! However, taking time off has many benefits for entrepreneurs.

• Reduced stress: Constantly working can easily lead to stress and burnout. Vacations are an opportunity to relax and unwind with those you love most.
• Increased creativity: Did you know getting out of your daily routine can stimulate creativity? New experiences can inspire different ideas for your business.
• Enhanced productivity: Long breaks improve focus and concentration when you return. You’ll have more energy and motivation in your business after taking a few days off.
• Improved decision–making: When you step away from work, you gain a new perspective on things and can make better decisions when you’re back in the office.

Although I don’t recommend thinking about your business while on vacation, being in a relaxed state of mind can stimulate new ideas and get you excited to be back in the office. 

Confirm Automation Systems Are Functioning

I have a ton of automated systems running in the background of my business. They keep my business running without manual work from me in the day-to-day, and they do the same while I’m out of the office. My business wouldn’t thrive without automation systems!

If you don’t have any automation in your business, preparing for a vacation is the time to do it! I’m telling you… it gives me peace of mind knowing everything is working while I’m gone. Potential clients can still book discovery calls. My audience is still being nurtured via email and social media. Client projects are still on track to be completed on time. It all comes down to automation.

Here are some ideas of things you can automate:

• Email autoresponder
• Social media posts
• Marketing emails
• Discovery call workflow
• Active proposals and contracts

There’s much more you can automate in your business, but these ideas will be enough to get you through your vacation time off.

Communicate with Clients

Clearly communicate your plans to take time off with your clients. I usually tell them my vacation plans as soon as they are confirmed. Then, I add my out-of-office days to my email signature and highlight them so they are easy to see in every email I send. I also send a final reminder of my time off about a week before. I want to make it super clear that I won’t be available.

I keep clients updated on the progress of the work and what to expect while I’m out. This could include:

• The date I’ll be back in the office.
• Who they can reach out to for support.
• A way to reach me in an emergency.

I set expectations and boundaries around my time off, too. I want to enjoy my vacation time, but I also know I’m responsible for my clients. If there’s an emergency, they need a point of contact or a way to reach me. Sometimes that’s just the nature of the job! 

Arrange Support

I can usually get everything done by the time I’ll be gone before I leave. However, some clients have projects that need to keep moving while I’m on vacation. In that case, I enlist my team to cover for me while I’m out. 

I make it clear with my team about who is handling what tasks and the deadlines. If they’re authorized to communicate with my client, I inform my client of their point of contact while I’m on vacation. It’s nice knowing I have support while on vacation.

It takes some preparation to take a vacation but it’s always worth it when I’m on the beach with a drink in my hand. Entrepreneurs tend to skip vacation time, but isn’t that one of the reasons we started our businesses? To have the freedom to take time off whenever we want? Take your much-deserved time off! Your mental health and business will thank you for it ❤️

About Solution Integrators

To keep it simple, I’m Ashley, a Chief Systems Officer. I take your complex problems and find ways to simplify them. My goal isn’t just to save you time (saving you time is the easy part!) – I want to fully level up the way you interact, manage, and fulfill offers for your clients. I want to help you provide a cohesive experience. An experience that not only feels like quality but looks that way, too. From onboarding to offboarding – I want to transform each phase of interaction from lead to signed client. Let’s work together!