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Real Entrepreneurs Don't Unplug To Recharge

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With vacation season in full bloom, many entrepreneurs and their teams feel the need to "unplug" or totally disconnect emotionally and electronically from work.  My advice is if you want to relax and recharge with peace of mind then you better stay "plugged in" - at least on what I call on low voltage current - to what is happening at work while you are away.  Believe me, I am not trying to be the evil work genius that takes away your precious vacation time just so we get another hour or two of work done. In this case, staying plugged in is not about productivity. It is about peace of mind.

We have simply reached a point where staying currently connected to work even while on vacation, a long weekend or a day off is less nerve wracking and more relaxing than unplugging with a hard shutdown of "getting away from it all." I don't think there is any such thing as totally unplugged any more.

Here is why - when your phone is off, admit it - you are thinking in the back of your mind about what you are missing. Did the customer call? How did the presentation go? I wonder if they need me? Then, whatever stress you might have reduced by being disconnected goes out the window when you return with the cold re-start of work on that dreaded first day back. You are jammed with texts, emails and voice mails backed up like an LA freeway. You have a rush of stress levels through the roof.  I talked to an entrepreneur last Thursday who said, "I was off last week and I have been "digging out" all week, and I am over this. It has screwed up my whole week."   I asked, "did you stay plugged in with email and text while you were gone?" She said, "oh, here and there but not much, actually just once; dude I went off the grid." I had in fact emailed her while she was away and was greeted with one of those cookie cutter replies that has the warmth of a half-hearted smile "I will be out of the office until July 2nd and will only have periodic access to emails." Well, I guess I will just wait on you to return even though I need an answer now. Please spare me any thoughts that these automated replies are the answer to how one can unplug and feel good about it. How can you feel good and have peace of mind when you just made the customer feel 2nd rate? I would have my IT folks kill this as an email reply option unless you really want an insensitive tool that leaves the customer flapping in the wind and automates employee procrastination, a big cause of stress.

I know some will ask what one should do if they are getting married or have some event that demands their full time attention. Still, don't send the automated “I'm gone, your problem” reply. A more peaceful and professional way is to seamlessly forward your email to a person who can back you up - live and in person - like this: “Joe is out on personal time but I am here to help you.” Or someone perhaps answers the phone forwarded to them with the same message.  As an alternative, I can just barely live with the half-hearted reply if it states – “I am on vacation but available by text and email if you need me.  Please contact my associate if they can help you in my place.”

It is smarter, easier and less stress on everyone if we just stay plugged into work. The question is how much and at what level you should stay plugged in when you are taking time off.  Just like electricity has a high voltage and low voltage, we should have the same in our plugged in modes. In a routine work day, we are always plugged into high voltage mode, multi-tasking, instantly checking emails and texting while working is ok.  Don't confuse it with driving.  On vacation, go to low voltage plugged in mode where you stay current but amp it way down.  Low voltage is not to just plug in when you get up in the mornings and when you go to bed at night - that was fine in the 90's when you checked emails while you had access to a land line at home or a hotel room.  Here is the good news - it is easier now to stay plugged in all day than it used to be to check your email just twice a day. Just stay plugged in with good judgment is what I advise.

I recently took a salt water fishing trip. I checked my email before I got on the boat and checked it when I returned five hours later. I did not check it once while I was fishing but had my smartphone in case of an emergency from my family or customer. However, when I returned I did not immediately go and down beers at the local seafood shack - I did that right after I checked my emails and texts – which I did as soon as my feet hit shore. It took me about 5 minutes to write two replies and send one email. I did not answer 20 or so emails as those could wait until I returned to work.  I was both plugged in but also away from it all when I wanted to be and needed to be - that is the low voltage plug in.  We were there to fish and it would have been ruder than an automated reply for me to constantly have my phone out with my fellow fisherman on board. OK, I sneaked two peaks. But what a relief it was to plug in before we left, stay current for an emergency and plug right back in when we returned.  I think today's new "unplugged" is to stay plugged in with ease and freedom.