Why You Need to Take Your Vacation

You may remember that MasterCard commercial from a few years ago where children remind their parents to take vacation time. Its message is still every bit applicable today.

It’s alarming to think that there were 705 million days of unused vacation last year. In a country where vacation time isn’t mandated and work days have become blurred with our personal lives; are we risking our own well-being by being too available to our employers? Why can’t we unplug and enjoy time off?

More and more people can’t let it go. The fear of missing out (#FOMO) on something important looms. Sometimes it’s actually more work to leave (if you need to find someone to cover for you or your work piles up while you are gone.) Some are in a situation where they can’t afford to take the time off or worst of all you have this need to be busy at all times and don’t want to appear lazy or less dedicated if you take time off. Sadly, even those of you who are taking time off are still checking in with the office (40% of men and 30% of women do this according to this survey by Wrike.)

While there are 99 reasons why not taking a vacation is a problem for you, your team and your company, we’d like to call your attention to these: 

• You are essentially giving money away to your employer. Of those 705 million unused days in 2017, 212 million of these days were forfeited, costing workers a staggering $62.6 billion in lost benefits. Read this again and let it sink in! Because if this doesn’t compel you to use your time, we’re not sure what will.
• Your work life and home life can be strained because you are all work, all the time. This can take a very real toll on your health and well-being. You know what they say about all work and no play!
• You can burn out and this can negatively impact your employer’s bottom line with increased healthcare costs or costly mistakes because you’re not on your game.
• You risk some coworker backlash. Not being able to disconnect and take time for yourself really can throw off the energy and vibe with your team.

The good news: Many employers are getting better about promoting a vacation-friendly culture and we applaud those that are. Let’s all agree that taking a break (even a short one) is good for the soul. You'll have a better mindset when you return to work, are likely to be more productive and creative, and your coworkers will be happy to see you and hear about your vacation. We’d go so far as to say it will remind them of how valuable you are to the team.

And most importantly, you work hard and you absolutely deserve to take time off to recharge whenever you need to. So stop wasting the gift of your vacation time. Get out there and enjoy #summervacation while you can.