Vacation Avoidance Syndrome: Why Aren’t We Taking More Time Off?

Last updated on: August 16, 2011 at 7:10 am by JBW

Vacation Avoidance Syndrome: Why Aren’t We Taking More Time Off? 2011-08-16T07:10:57-05:00 JBW

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On Saturday I will be departing for two full weeks of vacation, the first time in twenty five years of work that I have dared such an extended break.

My wife has been badmouthing the paltry one-week vacation for years, insisting that it barely allows enough time to begin winding down from the crushing pace of work. She makes it out to be downright barbaric. “Look at those Europeans!” she’ll say. “They take off the entire month of August – and that’s just the summer!”

But there is a perfectly good explanation why I have avoided the two-week vacation all these years: I am afraid that everyone at work will forget about me.

I am gripped by this nagging worry that once I am out of range for more than five days or so, I will inevitably be greeted upon my return with something like, “Heyyyy there, welcome back!

Now, who are you, again?”

As ridiculous as this may seem, it is a central fear among many managers these days – driven, no doubt, by the flaky condition of the economy, which creates the constant need to be integral, necessary, and at the center of things.

We’d like to believe we are indispensable, and short vacations help prop up that image.

Click here to finish reading this post over at The High Calling.

Image by Craig Allen. Used with permission. Sourced via Flickr.

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