Two weeks unplugged. For realz.
Especially in my agency days when everything felt like lightening-pace and mission-critical, I was often guilty of the "I'll be out for a week BUT will skim emails daily” vacation.
Was it vacation? Was it good for me? Was it good for my family? Was it good for my team? No.
Having spent about a year and a half consulting and being in control of my own calendar (AND having clients and teams who value well-being, with acute care for social well-being), it was time to truly take a vacation. Unplugged.
This summer, we took a family trip to Italy. Another post (or three!) coming soon.
My husband and I took two full weeks off — away from work, email and social media. Okay, maybe I scrolled a few times on Insta and posted on our last day in Rome! But besides that - and photos and my kindle - we were unplugged!
I set myself free.
I trusted my team to get the work done.
I trusted people knew how to reach me if anything was truly urgent.
I lived the experiences (versus thinking about what to post or getting the perfect shot. You know what I’m talking about, huh?)
I looked up, instead of down.
I watched my kids, the birds, strangers.
I soaked up the beauty of the simple moments and the vibrancy of the city, the language and the history.
This was precious time to meaningfully connect with my family, in nature and in culture, and to reconnect with dear friends that we rarely get to see IRL.
I returned fueled up and ready to dig back into the work.
Enter serendipity. The week of my return, Betsy Parker, CEO of Sunny, posted on LinkedIn about the importance of disconnecting from work from time to time.
“In my experience, fully disconnecting from work (even if just for an hour or two) is one of the most powerful ways to nourish meaningful connections and feed our primal need for time with others.”
A “pinch-me” moment. I am the Chief Marketing Officer for Sunny and this is the work we do.
We shine the light on the importance of meaningful social connection.
We practice what we preach.
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