I've recently returned from 3 1/2 weeks away with the three 'goats' and Denise where we enjoyed the fine Puget Sound sea air of Gig Harbor. Ever since I can remember, Denise and I take 3 weeks of holiday in the summer usually coinciding with the last week of July and first two weeks of August. We might venture to Europe or parts of Canada … but this was our first time in the USA for three weeks straight and with the three goats.
We nearly FedEx'd the goats to Siberia half way through the trip, but that's another story for another day.
I also have something to confess. I lied.
Not about anything from above, but with my 'out of office' message.
If you received one from me, I mentioned in it that I was on my annual 'acoustic and unplugged' summer tour.
I wasn't unplugged at all. In retrospect, it was a lie. A bit like Google's 20% time.
But there is a difference I'd like to share with you. Whilst I lied and was totally plugged in with my iPad and Blackberry Z10 (yes, I really like it - give them a break for crying out loud) fluidly connected to the interwebs … I was fully and completely detached from work, from email and from any of my current deliverables.
I may not have unplugged but I detached.
And the team at TELUS -- where I currently work -- were just fine while I detached.
While I was plugged in overlooking the beautiful waters of Puget Sound, I was doing a lot (I mean a lot) of reading for book #2. I was doing some writing as well, and as you know, I like to write in Evernote so being plugged in was somewhat handy at times. I even played a few online games.
And yes, we had fun with the goats as well. Do you know how many crabs there are to catch in those waters?
But whenever they find me or I seek them out, the statistics of people working during a holiday sends me to the infirmary. For example:
A Pertino Survey found 47% of Americans say relaxing on vacation means knowing they’re never more than a few clicks away from the office
Harris Interactive found 61% of employees planned to work while on holiday in 2013 up from 52% in 2012 and 46% in 2011
Robert Half Management found 64% of Canadian CFO's they polled check in with work while vacationing
And this Vacation / Work-Life Balance (not) infographic depicting Americans and their vacation plans will surely send you to the nearest watering hole
While Baratunde Thurston may have "Left The Internet For 25 Days" -- providing some compelling reasons why to unplug in his Fast Company piece -- I'm advocating a different philosophy. In fact, research proves email ‘vacations’ -- or detachment as I refer to it -- can decrease stress and increase concentration.
You should detach while on holiday … not unplug.
You simply need the discipline to not do 'work' work while being plugged in. You need to detach yourself from work.
Think you can do it? Think you can detach and remain plugged in?
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We are so proud to have had you at our event. Your talk was a big hit. It moved us. We can’t thank you enough.
Malin Björnell, Salesforce
Dan challenged us to have clarity of purpose, both as individuals and as an organization. He related inspiring stories drawing on his experience in business, technology and academia. As he said, ‘There is no ownership without belonging.’
Christian Pantel, D2L
Fantastic engaging talk for our global partner summit. Thank you so much, Dan!
Barb Kinnard, CEO Response Biomedical Corp
Dan not only brought his presentation to life with his charisma, but also content, style and presentation finesse. Our members were especially interested in his thought provoking and top of mind topic on the future of work and how we’re going to be leading the next generation of leaders.
Cheryl Goodwin, CPA
Dan is a conference organizer’s ideal speaker. Not only did he inspire and energize our group, but he also masterfully adapted his content so it resonated with the audience and our conference theme. As a bonus, Dan is able to nimbly navigate to adjust to a reduced time slot when other speakers went over time without sacrificing the impact of his session.
Director and General Counsel
Dan accomplished what we set out to do, which was not only to be inspirational, but also to leave everyone with tools and food for thought / self-reflection to improve their personal and professional lives.
I've recently returned from 3 1/2 weeks away with the three 'goats' and Denise where we enjoyed the fine Puget Sound sea air of Gig Harbor. Ever since I can remember, Denise and I take 3 weeks of holiday in the summer usually coinciding with the last week of July and first two weeks of August. We might venture to Europe or parts of Canada … but this was our first time in the USA for three weeks straight and with the three goats.
We nearly FedEx'd the goats to Siberia half way through the trip, but that's another story for another day.
I also have something to confess. I lied.
Not about anything from above, but with my 'out of office' message.
If you received one from me, I mentioned in it that I was on my annual 'acoustic and unplugged' summer tour.
I wasn't unplugged at all. In retrospect, it was a lie. A bit like Google's 20% time.
But there is a difference I'd like to share with you. Whilst I lied and was totally plugged in with my iPad and Blackberry Z10 (yes, I really like it - give them a break for crying out loud) fluidly connected to the interwebs … I was fully and completely detached from work, from email and from any of my current deliverables.
I may not have unplugged but I detached.
And the team at TELUS -- where I currently work -- were just fine while I detached.
While I was plugged in overlooking the beautiful waters of Puget Sound, I was doing a lot (I mean a lot) of reading for book #2. I was doing some writing as well, and as you know, I like to write in Evernote so being plugged in was somewhat handy at times. I even played a few online games.
And yes, we had fun with the goats as well. Do you know how many crabs there are to catch in those waters?
But whenever they find me or I seek them out, the statistics of people working during a holiday sends me to the infirmary. For example:
