Is a change really as good as a rest?

As you may have noticed, I've not published anything for the past few weeks. I've had a wonderful time away on holiday in Italy enjoying the sunshine, the lovely food, and some quality time with family and friends. 

I'm not knocking those who choose to work whilst on holiday, but I'm sure you'll be pleased to know you won't see me in my swimming costume doing a facebook live anytime soon! I'm a great believer in work life balance and for me, that means clear boundaries between when I'm working and when I'm playing. 

Technology is a wonderful thing and has lots of benefits, but the "always on" culture means it's harder to switch off and recharge our batteries. Without down time, our brains don’t work as well and we don’t perform at our best. 

It can be tempting to just have a quick check of emails to see how things are going, but one thing often leads to another and before you know it you’re sucked in to a problem that would likely have resolved itself before you got back....but which is now playing out in your head while you try and snooze on the beach. My advice? Better the devil you don’t know! 

So, next time you’re on holiday, or it’s your day off, make it exactly that. Spend your time doing something you want to. I learned how to stand up paddle board in Italy, it’s something I’ve wanted to try for a while. When I say learned, I mean I can stay on and paddle now, but there was lots of falling off in the first couple of hours, and lots of bruises (bodily and ego) too! I ached from head to toe the next day but the sense of satisfaction was worth it. Just need to learn how to steer the damn thing next!! 

So now it’s your turn. How would you rate your work life balance? Do you have time to rest and recharge your batteries? What one thing can you do to make sure you that you’re getting the down time you need so you’re at your best when you need to be.