“I’m not going to do another year where I work straight through from January to December without taking any time off”. That’s what I’d said at the beginning of 2015. Fast forward 12 months and there I was. Beyond exhausted. Absolutely shattered.

2015 had been ‘full on’ and I’d been operating at a crazy pace. There I was … halfway through December and I’d done the exact opposite of what I’d promised myself … again.

So I went home to Australia for a break.

After a week I got back on the plane to San Francisco even though I knew I wasn’t feeling 100% recharged.

“You’re not ready to go back. You need another week. Maybe two. What’s the rush?” The voice inside my head was on to something.

So I took another 10 days off. And guess what? The world kept on turning while I was offline! The company didn’t collapse into a heap. The office didn’t burn down. The team didn’t all run away to Puerto Vallarta!

Even though it was halfway through January, I decided to make my 2016 New Years resolution.

Yes – I only made one: I would take a 4-day weekend every month. Device free. A 4-day full technological detox to re-charge every single month.

After all a one-week break after working non-stop for 51 weeks is not enough to ensure you re-charge properly.

Stop kidding yourself. You’re not invincible. Nobody is. We all need to re-charge. Whether we’re listening to a voice inside our head or whether we choose to listen to our body, we just need to stop, listen and re-charge.

Our friends at Expedia have put together this awesome Infographic revealing 12 reasons why your brain craves vacation time. And for any business owners or managers reading this, take particular note of points #7, #8 and #9: Vacation time ultimately improves work quality, inspires creativity, and enhances performance at work! To view it, click here.

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