Vacation: Distress, or De-Stress?

Vacations are supposed to be a break from the stress of everyday life. But sometimes vacations add more stress, which eliminates the benefits of your time away and leaves you feeling like you need a vacation to recover from your vacation.

This isn’t just about the post-vacation blues. We all struggle to get back in the groove when we return home. If there is a cure-all for that, please tell me! This is a different kind of issue, when you return home from vacation even more stressed out than when you left.

Harvard Business Review got to the root of this problem:

Poorly planned and stressful vacations eliminate the positive benefit of time away. The less the stress, the more likely you will experience a positive benefit from the time off. A positive, well-managed vacation can make you happier and less stressed, and you can return with more energy at work and with more meaning in your life.

The article goes on to explain some of the key components of a relaxing, happy vacation: plan ahead, plan in detail, and get away – far away! – from home.

Vacations are investments that pay in memories, happiness, and hopefully – less stress. So when the stress of planning vacations makes you less likely to take one, or the stress from taking a vacation that’s not well planned detracts from its benefits, what’s the answer?

Get someone else* to plan it for you!

*(I mean me.)