One of the realities of my situation is that sometimes I have to work while on vacation. Right now, I’m on spring break with my son. We are visiting my grandfather in southern Arizona, as well as spending time in San Diego.
I’ve had to make changes to my routine in order to get the most important tasks on my list taken care of. This isn’t too much of a problem, since I try to arrange matters so that I have time to work and enjoy myself while on vacation.
For my current trip, I’ve made it a point to change my sleeping habits a bit. First of all, the Internet at my hotel in southern Arizona is very slow. As a result, I’ve been limited as to when I can work. It’s working best between 5:30 a.m. and 9 a.m. So far, because we’re visiting my grandfather, I’ve been able to get back to the hotel and get to sleep between 9 p.m. and 10 p.m.
This has been helpful, since I can get up and get in a little work while the Internet is still working at a reasonable pace. It’s not fast, by any means, but it’s bearable. I expect things to be better when we get to San Diego and have access to better services.
Making Time to Work
One of the challenges, though, is doing a couple hours of work while I have my son with me. It’s one thing to work when I’m traveling on my own; it’s something else altogether when I have a child with me.
I’m fortunate that my son is 11 now. He can use his handheld game system, or watch TV while I work. He’s also old enough that I can send him across the hall to get ice, or complete other tasks of a similar nature. When he was younger, though, it was mainly about setting him up with a cartoon or movie while I worked.
When we have a suite, and I can shut the door to the bedroom, it works well because then my son can sleep while I work, either in the evening or in the morning. But when we are in the same room, his bed is only a couple feet from my bed, and I can’t just type away with the light on while he tries to sleep. I have to work around his sleep schedule – which sometimes means I go to bed much earlier than usual, and get up earlier than I would normally.
Finding time to work while you’re on vacation is never fun, but sometimes it needs to be done. Make it a point to find the time to work if you can.
Of course, depending on your job, you might not have to work at all. As a freelancer, I work even when I travel. I don’t mind because, overall, I get to live a lifestyle I enjoy with a great deal of flexibility. However, there are those who would prefer to not work while on vacation. For me, that would mean working ahead so I can relax later. For others, it means getting a “regular” job that can be left at home when they travel.
Whatever you decide, it’s important to do what works for you, and make plans to accomplish what needs to be done.
I nevecer work when on vacation. My vacation is holy thing to me. But there were years where I didn’t have any vacation for years. Now with 30 days off (in Europe) plus some national holidays we have more then 6 weeks off per year.
I’ve taken to working while on vacation recently; last year, I went on four vacations and worked during all four. For each, it was easy because I am an early riser, so I would get up super early and take my laptop to a cafe or just the hotel lobby as to not disturb whoever I went on the trip with, and work away.
I find when you are on vacation, an hour is much more productive than an hour spent working at home because you want to get out and do things!I Sometimes, I’d work for an hour, sometimes two in the morning. Then, I’d veg out in the obligatory pre-dinner hotel room relaxing session and plug away at some easier tasks.