I’m not sure if you’re like me or not, but I’ve come to realize that I’m not the best at taking time off from work. I’m fortunate to be employed by a company that offers paid time off, and a reasonable amount of it each year. However, I’ve found myself always ending the year with a surplus balance, and thankfully I can roll it over (up to a limit, which thankfully I haven’t hit that yet) but still I wonder if rolling over PTO is a good thing or not. 2020 and COVID really made me worse at taking PTO, and I didn’t take a single day off until halfway through 2020. I took a day or two here and there but I think in total I only took maybe 10 days off all year (2 working weeks). Now I realize that might be more time than you are allowed to take off in your job, but I’d like to explore the point of us not taking time off as much as we should, regardless of how much PTO you earn. Often times I find that posts I write are more for me and that I write the things that I need to hear! 

It forces us to come to terms with us not being superhumans 

Although probably obvious, I’m not superman. I’m just a regular human like the rest of us, and I have limitations and boundaries just like everyone else. Sometimes I push myself to go too hard or for too long – and work is one of those areas I find myself doing it. I’m not sure why I do it, no one is making me continue to work, no one is forcing me not to take PTO, yet I still continue to grind along. I’m not sure if there’s a fear of me needing to take PTO and not having enough, or if me taking time off takes away from my standing at work or something, both of which I know are not true. I’ve definitely had times at work that I’ve found myself burning out (never fully burned out just yet) and often it goes along with me reminding myself I probably need a vacation. 

PTO is the universe’s subtle way of reminding us that we’re not superhumans and that we need rest, we need a break and we need time off. 

Time off is time off

One thing that 2020 has taught me is that time off no matter what it looks like is still time off and therefore can be recharging for us. Prior to 2020 I would only take PTO when I was going on a trip; the two were almost synonymous. Whether it was a long weekend at the beach or the mountains, or a full week (or two!) for an exotic vacation, PTO meant me jumping on an airplane or in a car and going somewhere. In 2020 that wasn’t really feasible, and although later in the year we got a short beach trip in (ok, actually 2 of them), I learned that even if I’m not going anywhere, it can still be valuable time off at home. On my days off as of late I’ll: sleep in, grab coffee, meet friends for lunch, read, write, do things around the house, or just veg out and watch some TV. Regardless of what it is, it’s almost more the act of not working that really brings value and recharging in our lives. 

For me, this practically looks like me taking more random days off here and there, for no apparent ‘reason’ (i.e. not a trip). Although I’ve still got progress to make, I am getting better at it! 

Recharging is so important 

I wrote a post recently on the importance of recharging vs. just ‘relaxing’ and it really was beneficial for me to write and think through. One thing that 2020 has really honed in on for me as being important is the fact that mental health is so critical and I believe that properly recharging is a key contributor to my mental health. That’s why I’ve been trying to focus more on actively recharging – i.e. doing things that bring me joy, intellectual stimulation, challenge me, instead of just zoning out watching Netlix while scrolling on my phone. 

When you take time off, do it purposefully, do it with the intent of giving yourself space away from work and the ability to recharge. 

YOLO

I don’t often remember certain days or weeks at work, nor do I reflect fondly on all the time I spent at work. What I do remember fondly is quality time away – whether it was trips with friends or families, vacations or even just a chill day at home. If you’re on the fence (like I often am) about taking time off, one thing I’ve tried to remind myself of is that fact that 5 years from now I won’t be sad that I didn’t work more, and instead I’ll be said that I didn’t take more time away if I had the extra PTO. 

We only have one life to live and although some of us really do enjoy our jobs (I know not everyone can say that), I think it’s important to try to maximize the quality of our lives, and often times that means spending more of it doing what we love or spending it with those we love, vs. just at work. If you’ve got PTO (looking at myself, YoungMoneyFinance), it’s important to plan and take it, rather than just hoarding it up!