Why Business Owners Need a Vacation (and How to Plan Yours)
 

Picture this: Work is under control, you’ve got a plan to keep plates spinning without you for the week, and you’re finally on a work-free getaway. Heck, you’re feeling so relaxed and present that you and your family are building vacation memories Hallmark would kill to capture on film.

Wishful thinking, right?

We get it. No matter how badly you need a vacation, it can feel like an impossible dream at any stage of business. Getting away from work takes work, especially when you’re the business owner (aka the chief everything officer). You might worry things will fall apart without you or feel like you barely unplug before it’s time to jump back in.

But no matter how tricky it is to step away, you need a break—even if it starts with a long weekend. Your health matters. Your family matters. And your team needs to see what healthy leadership looks like.

So let’s unpack why time off matters and how to plan a getaway that doesn’t leave you dreading the return.

Why Do Business Owners Need a Vacation?

The hard truth is, you need a break. And it’s healthy to admit it. But don’t stop there. Once you’ve said those four powerful words—I need a vacation—you’ve got to make it happen.

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Here’s the Debbie Downer side of why breaks are important:

• Working long hours increases your chance of death from heart disease and stroke.¹
• Every vacation you skip raises your risk of heart disease and stroke—by nearly 25%.²

That’ll get your attention! But besides being scared straight, you also need a vacation for positive reasons like these:

• You'll enjoy things that fill your soul. Taking a break gives you more time with family and friends and the great outdoors. Why does it matter? Because 72% of Americans say experiencing nature is at least very important to them.³
   
• You’ll stir up new ideas, solve nagging problems, and make better decisions. Did you know the windshield wiper was invented because, during a visit to New York, Mary Anderson realized that streetcar drivers were at the mercy of their side windows when it rained or snowed?⁴ She didn’t experience that problem sitting in an office. She was taking a break. And when she returned to her Alabama home, Mary sketched a wiper blade, had a company produce a model, and the rest is windshield-wiper history. Imagine the new ideas you’ll come up with as you refresh your mind and let new creativity flow.

Fun fact: Money expert Dave Ramsey says when he travels to his lake house, he keeps a yellow pad and pen near his tackle box. Then he’s ready to jot down new ideas or solutions to problems as they pop into his recharged mind.

• You’ll grow, and your leaders will grow too. An old Chinese proverb says, “When I hear it, I forget it. When I see it, I remember it. When I do it, I know it.” In other words, when your leaders and team members are given the chance to apply new skills and take on more responsibility in your absence, they build confidence and develop their leadership skills.
   
• You’ll fine-tune your work processes and systems. Your goal of taking a vacation is a great motivator to get your processes and systems in order. Documenting what you do and how you do it will help you see and fix gaps and see where you can easily delegate. In the end, you’ll have a working guide in place that will make your business stronger.
   
• You’ll make strides in three of the 6 Drivers of Business: Personal, People and Plan. Did you notice how we just hit on how time away makes you personally stronger, develops the people on your team, and gives your mind space to dream and plan? Those are three of the 6 Drivers of Business in the EntreLeadership System™ (the other three are Purpose, Product and Profit). And as you master these areas, your business naturally grows.
   
• You’ll develop a healthier company culture. When you actually disconnect from work, you give your team permission to enjoy a healthy work-life balance too.

Still not sure it's possible? Aaron Baeder, owner of Ophoff Companies, used to dread vacations. He'd get emergency calls on day one, spend the whole trip mentally back at the office, and return more exhausted than when he left.

“My wife lost her husband on vacation with her,” he says. His always-on pace wasn’t sustainable.

“I was either going to have a heart attack . . . or I needed to find somebody, some way, to help me get this thing back on track.”

Through a series of changs that included leadership coaching, Aaron learned how to lead himself better. He also started leading his team better and trusting them to make the right calls in his absence. Now he takes real vacations, completely unplugged, and comes back to find no fires or crises and nothing waiting to pull him under. The first time that happened, he admitted it stung a little. Then it clicked: This is what success looks like. 

3 Keys to Planning Your Vacation Strategy

There’s no going back now that you have your why. But crafting your vacation strategy is essential to your success. These three tips will help you plan.

1. Prepare your business.

• Hire people you trust. Building confidence to be away from work starts with building a strong team. You do this by hiring people who align with your core values and operate with a self-employed mentality—team members who own their work and the good of the company even when no one is watching. Trustworthy team members are ready to take on more responsibilities.
   
• Set clear boundaries. No matter how little or how much operations shift during your absence, ensure the people you work closely with know you won't be available to handle certain tasks. Tell your clients and vendors when and how business tasks will get done while you’re away. And if you completely shut down your business while you’re gone, give a notice that your business is closed for vacation weeks in advance. You’ll be amazed by how supportive people are when you loop them in early.
   
• Use technology. Automate repetitive tasks like invoicing, calendar scheduling and inventory management using software. You can also streamline operations by using automated email responses. The better you communicate when you plan to return and what to do in case of emergency, the more confident others will be in your service to them.

2. Prepare your team (in other words, delegate).

• Cross-train team members. Great leaders prepare their team members to cover lots of tasks so they can rise to new opportunities when duty calls. This is an important part of delegating with confidence. To grow your business—and to take a break from it—you’ve got to release some things to others who can handle them well. If you’re worried handing things off to others will be a burden to them, don’t be. When you trust and elevate high-performing team members, it’s called upskilling, and it actually motivates them more. Just keep tabs on their workload and stress level as you empower them to handle more. And be sure to reward their extra effort.
   
• Set clear expectations. Documenting your work and how you get it done gives your team the gift of clarity and sets you all up for a delegation win. If you really want to streamline your workflow, go a step further and identify what work is essential and what’s nonessential while you’re away. For example, preparing payroll for payday is an essential task to delegate or work on in advance. A nonessential task (one that can pause until you return) might be your weekly one-on-one meetings.
   
• Designate a point person. Who do you trust to handle communication and filter what’s urgent enough to contact you about while you’re away? That’s your point person. Identifying them is another critical part of effective delegation. Let your point person know what constitutes a true emergency, and empower only them to reach out to you. One business owner we know tells his team, “Only call in case of fire, flood or blood.” You likely want to add money or legal issues to that list, but the point is, make your boundaries clear.

3. Prepare yourself.

• Plan well in advance. When you schedule your vacation months in advance, you can block your calendar so nothing gets scheduled while you’re away. Planning far ahead also makes it easier to snag time- and money-saving travel deals and arrange details like pet care, package holds and travel schedules.
   
• Review finances and contracts. Check upcoming financial obligations like bills to pay and contracts that need to be signed. Also, look over your insurance coverage and make sure your policies are active to avoid surprises if an emergency happens.
   
• Disconnect with intentionality. Your vacation goal is to set aside distractions and do things you love with the people you love. Read, go fishing, play with your kids, or take a nap—whatever refreshes you! If unwinding is hard for you, try yoga, prayer or journaling to help you work through distractions and clear your head. Having some time to think will help you pinpoint business and leadership gaps you need to work on when you return. But once you identify them, set them aside and be where you are.

Related article: Small-Business Success Stories

How Do You Actually Unplug on Vacation?

Ever heard the saying, “Give me six hours to chop down a tree, and I’ll spend the first four sharpening the axe”? We’re not suggesting a tree-chopping or axe-throwing vacation. But we are saying that well-crafted time away from work is a sharpening stone that will hone your business.

Here are some more ideas on how to make your vacation more meaningful:

• Begin with the end in mind. Visualize what sounds fun and relaxing. Plan your location, time frame and budget around your vacation vision.
• Share your vacation goals with a few trusted work friends so they can help you disconnect.
• Start small if you need to. Even one day off makes a difference.
• Set boundaries for no phone at dinner and no work talk, and if you have to keep up on emails, set one hour in the morning to send and respond to messages.
• If you have to make a business call, schedule it in advance and limit the conversation to about 10 minutes.
• Get an accountability partner (like your spouse) to keep you in check.
• If you really want an electronics-free vacation, choose a destination with no internet service.
• Reframe your mindset: Taking this vacation will help you see the gaps in your business so you can make it stronger in the long run.

What Happens to Your Business When You Actually Take a Vacation?

Remember that Hallmark-worthy vacation from the beginning of this article? It’s not wishful thinking. It’s what happens when you do the work of planning before you leave. Yes, great leaders model hard work, but they also model rest, presence and fresh perspective that only comes from stepping back. So take care of your team, take care of your systems, and then take care of yourself. That's good vacation advice and good leadership.