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Feeling like you need a vacation from your vacation? We've all been there, and in this episode, we're your travel buddies here to help you avoid the vacation hangover and actually relax and recharge when you are away. It's a roundtable of tales and tips as we share our collective wisdom on packing smart—not hard—handling the unforeseen with finesse, and striking that perfect balance between a well-planned itinerary and the joy of spontaneity. Join us as we navigate the waters of vacationing with family in tow and meeting expectations. Get ready to arm yourself with strategies to help you create a system that allows you to truly turn on vacation mode.
Cabana Pods offers a therapeutic experience through immersive reality, focusing on emotional resilience. Research shows that immersive technologies tailored to one’s needs can immediately positively change well-being, mood, stress relief, and mindfulness.
Learn more about Cabana pods at https://www.yourcabana.com/pod
Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Tik Tok, or LinkedIn. Click here to check out Cabana.
Let's connect, click here to shoot us a text.
Feeling like you need a vacation from your vacation? We've all been there, and in this episode, we're your travel buddies here to help you avoid the vacation hangover and actually relax and recharge when you are away. It's a roundtable of tales and tips as we share our collective wisdom on packing smart—not hard—handling the unforeseen with finesse, and striking that perfect balance between a well-planned itinerary and the joy of spontaneity. Join us as we navigate the waters of vacationing with family in tow and meeting expectations. Get ready to arm yourself with strategies to help you create a system that allows you to truly turn on vacation mode.
Cabana Pods offers a therapeutic experience through immersive reality, focusing on emotional resilience. Research shows that immersive technologies tailored to one’s needs can immediately positively change well-being, mood, stress relief, and mindfulness.
Learn more about Cabana pods at https://www.yourcabana.com/pod
Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Tik Tok, or LinkedIn. Click here to check out Cabana.
Welcome back to You're Always Fine a space to show up for yourself and embrace the mess that lives underneath. Because, let's be real, it's exhausting always being fine. So grab your headphones and allow yourself to listen, laugh and even cry, because you are not alone. And we aren't always fine, and that's okay. And we aren't always fine, and that's okay.
Speaker 2:Have you ever come back from a week-long vacation and said I need a vacation from my vacation? You spend weeks planning for the trip, getting ready, making sure everything at work and home is taken care of, and if you are lucky that stress still allows you to look forward to your trip, then it finally arrives, only for it to fly by in a blur of activities. Next thing you know you're back feeling more exhausted than before you left. Yep, we've all been there. I call it the vacation hangover. I'm your host, christine.
Speaker 3:And I'm Teresa. Today we're dishing out all our tips, tricks and parent hacks to head into summer and your next trip with a vacation mindset that works for you instead of against you.
Speaker 2:I am someone who has fallen victim to the vacation hangover, and I'm not talking about the 20s. I'm talking about, like the 30s, in which vacation quite literally takes such a mental toll on me.
Speaker 3:I don't even know, because I don't even know if I do it correctly. I mean, for me you have the stress of planning for vacation not only planning like things out, but planning the packing. And you're not only packing for yourself, but you're packing for your kids. Some people pack for their husbands. I don't pack for my husband. I'm like you're, I'm, I'll handle the kids. I'm not going to let you handle that, husbands. I don't pack for my husband. I'm like you're, I'm, I'll handle the kids. I'm not gonna let you handle that. I'll handle packing for the kids, but I'm gonna pack it for you. But you know you have that. Then you have the. You have getting there. You have like food shopping, you have. I'm getting stressed just even talking and thinking about it well, it's so funny.
Speaker 2:I've been seeing a lot of these reels and I relate to them so much. It's something to the effect of, like there's always a spouse that spends all their time like planning and doing all the things and the one that just like shows up and is like giddy about vacation. I laugh every single time because that is like so the situation over here, oh yeah, is everything, I think, with vacation. I'm just coming off a 10-day trip with my family and like literally this is my first day back and we're recording in our pajamas. I do believe that how I approached this vacation was probably the pinnacle of my execution and trying to make it so that, like pre, during and post-travel put me in the best place to enjoy my time, to be able to unplug but also to get back into like my daily flow and routines, like I.
Speaker 3:I'm actually like extremely proud of the way I finally, it only took like 1 million drives, but yeah, I mean it is true, like when you have like things planned and set up, it does make things go smoother. And like, let's be real, you can have things planned and stuff like that, but there are things that are going to go wrong, you are going to forget things. But if you at least have some kind of like outline, you're going to already make things smoother. And you know, I'm not talking about doing that like two days before, I'm talking like doing it more a couple weeks before, because then you can iron out all the wrinkles, you can try and remember things that you forgot. So I definitely agree. I think like having a mindset of like being prepared as best you can like way ahead of time is definitely beneficial.
Speaker 2:I mean 100% about that as much as you can. I think prepared and adaptability is like one of the best things we can give ourselves. But as it relates to like vacation right, this pre-vacation stage in my opinion, really does set the tone, because if you head into anything frazzled, chaotic and stressed like, you're literally working against a successful outcome. Like definitely, trust me folks, I've been at this for 37 years. Attempting that type of energy has not worked.
Speaker 3:It's, it's true and like like for me as a mom, I know that one of the most stressful things for me is, you know, kids they have a lot of shit Like they just they have so much shit that like at the end of the day, like if it was something, like a lot of times if you forget it you can get it from the store. But you don't want to have to do that. But it's just like if I take one, like if I'm like, okay, my vacation's in a month, let me take these two days and just think about one kid. I've got two kids Let me just spend two days thinking about that one kid, make a list of everything that that kid needs, and then give myself a day in case I forgot anything and then the next day spend a day or two thinking about the list for my other child.
Speaker 3:I just think that that's a way of getting rid of some of the barriers that can come with late planning planning, because every little thing, like you might forget something on a list, that's really not that big of a deal, but it's going to stress you out because you forgot it and you have to go to the drugstore and spend money on it at like whatever drugstore you're going to that like marks everything up a million dollars more because you're on vacation. You're like in a vacation hot spot. So like, oh, you want band-aids. Pay $30 for a pack as opposed to like five. You know what I mean.
Speaker 2:I'm a list person. I used to really be against like packing lists because that's just like a waste of time. But as I've gotten more comfortable with my anxiety and my OCD and making accommodations for myself that just make my life easier in the long run, instead of letting everything overwhelm in my brain, as soon as I book a trip, I create a notion board for it. I will say now I have made myself a template. So it's like rinse and repeat, keep track of all the things for a trip. It's like writing quick notes, creating lists of things that need to be done before I go, things that I need to pack. Like you said, that gradual ramp up to the trip reduces stress but it also helps me get excited too.
Speaker 2:We live in a very like instant gratification world. There's so many studies about how prolonged gratification and like the hype up also contributes to the overall success or feeling fulfilled with like a vacation Right, and I don't know. For me it is, yes, like the organization part is like helpful, but it's pre-trip stress like gone and it also has been creating like a mental space for me to place some of like the anxieties yeah, that makes sense. Like the week of everything flooding my brain between things I want to get done packing, target runs, this or that. It's kind of like housed in this place and I know for me that really works.
Speaker 3:Yeah. So it's funny because Mike, my husband, is a list person. I'm very like, why do I have to give you a list? This isn't for vacation, but if I want things done around the house in my mind, I'm like, well, you just see it, you do it. If you see dishes in the sink, just do it. But he's like, if you give me a list, it'll get done.
Speaker 3:So, like I am more of like I have a list in my head but it really doesn't work when it comes to vacations and planning. Like it would work if it was just for myself, right, but it wouldn't work perfectly because I most likely would forget something. So I have had to like adjust the way that I handle planning for trips, because I would be so stressed, because I would do it my old way, not have a list, and, like you said, like there are certain things that you just can't pack until the very end. So I literally have a list for that now, like last minute things that like you're packing the day of, and like I create a list because it's so many like things you wouldn't even think of, like your toothbrush or your curling iron, your hair straightener or like shampoo, or like their kids, like favorite toys or something.
Speaker 2:We were away with my niece and, I kid you not, we all flew down, but my mom and dad drove down my sister's Acura and it was filled to the brim. She couldn't even pick us up from the airport because of all this stuff, like the formula that this you know like, and the diapers, the wipes, the binkies, the, the chain, the, the, the.
Speaker 3:What the heck are those called the exorcist, or things that you sit, you're like? Depending on how old they are, the more stuff they have.
Speaker 2:I never knew this was an actual thing until, like, the first thing you said is like kids have so much stuff and I'm just, oh my God, that makes sense, so much freaking stuff. This prep though, I will say so, the first time that I truly executed this this was part of like my bingo board and resolutions was to start enjoying travel more, because you know what travel usually takes out of me, and I really stopped traveling because it ends up just being such a negative pre, during, end, post. It's like what the heck am I doing and spending the money for? So having things I need to get done and including, like, my physical space, like making sure that when I get back I'm not walking into chaos.
Speaker 3:Oh yeah, that's. I'm like that.
Speaker 2:So like fridge clean, groceries for the next week, like planned, like I didn't have to think about the grocery list when I got home, I just went and I ordered on Instacart. Great, it's like the little things that I can do to help post vacation, christine, because it's already gonna be a struggle. I think we bring a lot of that energy to like our jobs and those types of responsibilities but we overlook the personal and work things right. Like you would never leave work without making sure someone covered whatever you need to be covered or met that expectation. But I feel like when it comes to personal, we kind of like give ourselves a shaft.
Speaker 3:Yeah, well, it's even like, even for the kids with like usually we go on vacation when it's the summer, so not necessarily school, but like they'll come back and they will, without a doubt, have some shape or form of sports, like depending on the time they're doing something.
Speaker 3:So like if I, ahead of time, look at their schedule for the week coming home and be like okay, like, and because they play for multiple teams, so like if I plan it ahead of time and just even have their uniform for even just like, let's say, we come home on a Sunday, and like they've got a game on Monday, like if I have that already done and their uniform for that team and game laid out, like it's already going to set me up, like, oh, okay, like we're good, that one's done, let's go to the next day. Like I'm going to be so much less stressed than if, like I get home, have to put the uniforms out, like and I feel like that's just like planning for vacation, right, like you're planning so that you don't have added unnecessary stress. It's the same thing for when you come back. Like I could see myself like not planning and not figuring out which game they had or whatever, and then like putting them in the wrong uniform or like something like that.
Speaker 2:Or like missing a game or something, or like rushing because like or like. If I had to say, I know you really well, so I can also see you rummaging through the laundry trying to find the goddamn like sock that Junior has to wear 100%. He's freaking out and then, therefore, like you're getting anxious about it because, like, who wants to be that mom?
Speaker 3:I know, I know. So it's true Like, and then if that's how you're coming back from vacation, like you don't even feel like you took one.
Speaker 2:A hundred percent. And I will say, like, while the pre and the post are difficult for me, I find that I struggle the most with transitioning to vacation mode. Like I find that I struggle to like leave work behind. I berate myself, it's like everything didn't get done the way I wanted it to get done, which is why I think this vacation again when I say it was a success, it was a success. I started implementing these things, but it didn't feel as successful as this one, because I berated myself about not getting my like every single thing I wanted to get done.
Speaker 2:You know, we all know, I'm a perfectionist, which is I'm working on it. But I tend to then like when I braid myself and like I'm, I'm stressed or whatever I then just try to like for I call it like forcing vacation mode, where I like try too hard to like go all in and make it worth the stress or make it worth um, yeah, yeah, yeah like you know, almost like I don't have FOMO, but I'm trying to create this on vacation like I'm gonna regret it kind of thing, even though like in my head I'm like definitely not.
Speaker 3:I don know. It's like this vicious cycle I've created. It's not living up to what you had it in your mind to be. And like I have just learned, now that I'm a parent and we take family vacations, like I have just learned, like I can't have expectations because with children comes so many, just like ebbs and flows, like it's just not going to go exactly according to plan. It just will not. So if that is my expectation, I'm going to be so much less stressed out when it doesn't flow the way that I expected it to. And that is why I am always advocating for like two week vacations, because I feel like it takes like, when you like pick up your entire family and plant it somewhere else, it takes at least like a solid three or four days to like reacclimate, and then you get like two days and then you're leaving.
Speaker 2:No, it is so true for me there's just like so many feelings that come with it Right Again with those expectations. I think social media plays a role in this Right Like. And also, everyone wants to be cultured and traveled, and this and that feeling guilty or feeling not present with who I'm there with because I'm trying to close up something, or when I'm relaxing, feeling like I'm wasting my vacation away, it's like a lot of pressure to put on something that's supposed to be relaxing, recharging and like enjoyable. That's exhausting Definitely.
Speaker 3:And it's hard too, because everyone has. Like Mike and I, when we got married, we had to like, kind of like not adjust, but like get used to the way the other person vacations.
Speaker 2:Oh great point.
Speaker 3:Yeah, like not everyone vacations the same. Facts, facts on facts. Yeah. So like I, a vacation for me would be literally to sit on the beach from like 630 in the morning till seven o'clock at night and I could just sit there and like exist there, obviously with like food and like a beer or something. But like that could be a relaxing vacation for me.
Speaker 3:Like that is not a relaxing vacation for Mike. He gets totally stir crazy. He like needs to be doing something. So that was a big adjustment because I was like I would get annoyed with him because I'm like what's your problem? Because then he knew I like to sit on the beach, so he would like like accommodate me, but then be annoyed because he's not having the type of vacation that he wants to have. So we kind of like have gotten to a point where, like on travel days, we'll like more low-key days and there'll be a day that like like, for example, when we um like arrive, usually the check-in times, places are like later in the afternoon anyway, so the entire day is like kind of wasted by the time you check in. So that's the day that we're gonna like food shop because it's like I don't want to food shop because it's like I don't want to food shop on like a full day.
Speaker 2:I would say on your TT beach time. I know, trust me. Yeah, public service announcement Do not call TT when she's on the beach for any business matters. She quite literally will go for your jugular from experience.
Speaker 3:So like. So, on travel days, we try and do all the like annoying stuff that vacation brings, because there is annoying things Food shopping is annoying, Going to the store or just little errands you might have to do in order to be able to relax. So we'll handle that on travel days and then we'll have days where we relax or whatever. But then we will throw in activities like that will work for the family too. Like we have to find something that like works well for the majority of people so that everyone enjoys it the best they can. Like I, we're not really into cramming activities. Like we want to do like one or two things, but we're not the type of people that are like oh, we didn't get to do this, so like we didn't, you know, utilize our vacation the best of our ability. So like I think we have a good balance of like having some days that are more like low key and then other days where we're like okay, we're going up, we're going to go here, we're going to go there.
Speaker 2:I love that point so much about cramming activities because I know for myself I think really up until this year when I was like I want to try to travel again, but do it a different way. I was very much in the mindset of like, if you're not doing all the things, and I don't mind, you know what all the things are, because like what, like what my favorite vacation is, I can't really give you an answer. Most of the time it's about like again the experience who I'm with, but like I don't have. Like you love the beach. Who I'm with, but like I don't have.
Speaker 3:Like you love the beach.
Speaker 2:I love the lake, but I live at the lake, you know. So it's like, yeah, um, so, on top of like not, it's having this thing mindset in which I need to do all of said things in order to vacation Right, I don't even know what those are.
Speaker 2:It completely like ignores the idea of vacation being relaxing, enjoyable and like giving myself permission to recharge and not jam pack every single day, doing, I will say, like two trips of 2024 I've had so far. I have like, not put so much pressure on activities and I've just done, done like if I wanted to take a nap during the day, like I allowed that, like you know, like I yeah, I made sure that I just did everything I could to enjoy every moment at what of it was and I, like I've said I've really had this the first vacation I've ever come back like truly feeling recharged. It also could have been the fact that the fireball was not going down very good this vacation, but here we are.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I mean, I think that's really, I think that's huge. I think it's good to also recognize your limits on vacation because even though you might not be working, like, there is stress that comes with the vacation. So, just like you would manage stress at work or whatever whatever that is, whether it's taking a nap or whether it's reading a book, like you do need to allow yourself that time of vacation so that you can get the most out of the vacation you're taking.
Speaker 2:Absolutely, especially these days. Everything's so dang expensive, right. But one last thing about transitions, and I don't. I see a lot of people doing this in the beginning and I want to just say I think that it is a hack or a tip or whatever we want to call it but give yourself the day buffer when you get home. Yes, I did that with this trip where it's like we, we flew home Saturday and we had all of Sunday and I get it the day before.
Speaker 2:It's like, oh my God, I'm so stressed, blah, blah, blah. But the reality of it is is you're never going to be more excited than that moment You're about to go. You'll be able to like find the energy after work as opposed to when you get back. Going right back into the grind is so hard, but also like nothing worse than looking at your suitcase for a week and a half knowing you have to unpack. That I know everyone doesn't have like that time. Whatever have you. But you know, when planning your trips, see what you can do to give that yourself, that that day buffer, and if you only do, one.
Speaker 3:My advice is, for sure, doing it when you return. You'll need it, I agree. I agree Cause it lets you settle in and like readjust I don't know. It lets you settle in and adjust and it lets you like put your life back together and like have yourself, be ready to, like jump back into your life.
Speaker 3:Like I know for me, I'm not someone that's going to feel settled if I can't unpack my suitcase and can't put my things away and can't get my car back to where it needs to be in order to transport my kids from game to game. Like I would need a day in order to unpack our car, since we drive for our vacations most of the time and the wash the wash that you have on vacation, or like any of that stuff like I would need a day to get that all situated in order for me to be like okay, like I am rested and I'm going to start my week off back in the real world and it's not going to suck nearly as bad as it would if I just jumped right back in and had my regular work stuff to do, plus the leftover vacation stuff I need to situate.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I mean I think again. So we've got the pre figured out, we've got our post plan and here we are. It's time for the good stuff here we are.
Speaker 2:Let's get into the tips for making the most of your actual vacation time stuff. Let's get into the tips for making the most of your actual vacation time. I think, titi, you made a really good point about that ramp up time. So how do you make the most out of when you're there, so that it's intentional, you're present, but also, like you said in the beginning, flexible, because SHIT is going to happen?
Speaker 3:Yeah, yeah, for real. I mean you have to indulge a little bit. Obviously, that's what vacation's for, and it's also nice to have some things planned out. But plan things out that are realistic for your situation. Like I'm not going to plan out some like elaborate when I've got two kids, like that are nine and six. Like I'm not going to plan out some elaborate thing that, like it's not going to work for their ages. You know what I mean. Like you're going to want to pick something that you can do, that that works for your situation, and you're also going to want to pick something that, if things have to change like, let's say, you pick an activity and then it rains that day like have a, have a backup activity.
Speaker 3:Like you never know what the weather's going to be. Like you know, so you want to, you want to plan so that you don't have to worry. Like the worst is when you're on vacation and you're like have everything planned for sunny days and then it rains, and then you're in an area that you're not necessarily familiar with, unless it's somewhere you go all the time. But like then you're scrambling, like, oh, what should we do for the weather, and then you'll probably wind up getting stuck inside and then you'll probably wind up just wasting that day. So if you plan ahead of time, like have an A option for good weather, a B option for bad weather, I think it just makes things a little bit easier.
Speaker 2:When we're talking about expectations. I think part of not cramming these activities allows the flexibility to be like okay, we didn't have anything planned for Wednesday, we're going to swap Tuesday's activity for Wednesday because Tuesday was a rain out and we couldn't do the activity. It allows like flexibility and then, I think, therefore makes you feel more content at the end. It's setting up again for success, with all the variables you can control.
Speaker 3:Yeah, and I feel like too, like when you have I don't know like for me it is very easy, since all of my work is on my phone, it's very easy for me to fall into just being like checking my phone or answering emails or, you know, doing whatever I need to do, social media wise, like. So it is hard and it's difficult, and I think that's something that a lot of people struggle with is unplugging on their vacation and how to be present, like and balance that, because a lot of people's work now is on their phones, like whether we want to take it with us or not, we do so, and I know you experienced that. You're someone that works from home. You have your laptop and your phone, so how do you manage to unplug Like you were with your family? Did you unplug when you were with them?
Speaker 2:I think this was again something I really really had to work at, and it just so happens to be our takeaway tool for today. And it's all about unplugging, because I think that's a huge part of the whole picture as well is that presence. So when you get back, it's not like, oh, what did I even do on vacation? I wasn't even there because I was so worried about everything, or work, or whatever it's called. Can I really unplug? And it's a set of questions that help you prioritize, decide, set expectations around your devices and technology on vacation. I know it sounds a little crazy, but we live in a world where everyone has so much access to you that, if you don't plan for it, your peace and your precious time with your family will be intruded on just because of the fact that they can send an email. Even if you have an away message, you're getting that in your email box.
Speaker 3:Right and it's like, do I look?
Speaker 2:at it I know it's there. I know it's there. I know it's there, so I love this tool because it allows you to hold yourself accountable, maintain boundaries while also setting realistic expectations internally, but also for your family or friends or whoever you're traveling with.
Speaker 3:Yeah, and that's that's a good point, because, like, if I'm just traveling with just my kids and my husband, like it's a little bit easier, like to get away with and not that I want to get away with it, but it's a little like he understands what I do for work right, like he understands that like all the time my work is in my hand, like he he gets that. But when you're traveling with other people that haven't seen you in a long time and this is the time that they get with you they're not going to be as understanding you know, especially if they don't see what I do every day and don't understand, like, how much of my time it takes. So I think that's that's a good thing to have with the tool, because the expectations can't just be for yourself, it has to be for also the people that you're traveling with. So give me the tool.
Speaker 2:All right. So you're going to want to answer these questions. The first question you want to answer is what is the least amount of connectivity I can get away with? What I'm talking about here is reviewing your work culture, separating your anxieties from your employer's expectations. What is the expectation while you're away and what's the least amount that you can in terms of work? Like, do you have to check every three days? How does your PTO work? Are you working remotely? And therefore you're working? You know, like, what are the bounds of your responsibilities. And then this is the one that I think people miss in terms of connectivity. Consider the relationships outside of the people you're traveling with. Who needs my attention, non-negotiably when I say this, I mean checking in with someone who is watching your children or your dog would be a connection that you would want to maintain consistently throughout your trip, whereas like catching up with an old friend because you're finally just not working, can be done when you return right.
Speaker 2:It's not something that you like have to prioritize while you're away just because you know you have time. So what's the least amount of connection you can have? So the next thing after that you want to consider is what do you want to use your devices for while you're away? I know it sounds so juvenile, but we have a lot of these things on autopilot, like you said.
Speaker 2:So if you are bringing your laptop, your tablet, your nook, your phone, your work phone, your smartwatch, your Alexa, your projector, your digital camera and phone, your work phone, your smartwatch, your Alexa, your projector, your digital camera and who knows what else, be intentional about how you want to use the device and limit yourself to only using them in that specific way. This will help you ensure you don't do unnecessary work while you're away, or you don't get lost scrolling, or you don't get lost scrolling, or you don't end up binge watching something on Netflix. It's an intentionality, and bringing that to your conscious sets a different type of internal expectation for yourself. And then the last thing I will say is what platforms do I want to disconnect from while I'm away?
Speaker 2:And this is a big one and a hard one, because we all use a variety of platforms daily to connect, plan, organize, entertain, create all the things. So think about the apps you use and which ones could you use a mental break from After you have decided. The big part about this one is set yourself up for success by blocking the temptation. So build a little friction. Making the platform less accessible in the moment will allow you to really unplug, you know, and when I say that that's like offloading the app, taking your work email off your phone for the week, stopping notifications, putting focus signs on it may seem like daunting or silly or like, oh, I don't have to go through those lengths, but the reality of it is is by the time you realize that you're in the thing that you said you needed a break from.
Speaker 3:Yeah, you're already done, you're already done.
Speaker 2:You're ready. You've already scrolled for too long, you know. And so, um, as hard as it is, you know cause? You know we both shoot a lot of content for our platforms, et cetera. I did not go on TikTok the entire. Wow, that's a biggie. Yeah, Like I did, and I honestly like TikTok.
Speaker 3:I think I went on Facebook the most because it's the one that like bores me, like I didn't have to really worry about that one.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, tiktok sucks you in, man, you get lost on there for hours and you know I just set up a focus and I just decided that. You know it's not something I wanted to get, like you know, sucked into, even if it was because I have a tendency of getting sucked into by filming things that I'll edit later or whatever. You know creating that content and you really do miss so much when you're, when you're behind, you know the camera. So, while it may feel silly, you want to ensure that you create a system that's working for you and not against you. All right, titi, any questions? Anything so far?
Speaker 3:No, I mean, I definitely I've got a couple vacations coming up, so I'm going to need to take some of these, especially the social media ones, because it's hard, man. I mean, especially when you make money on social media, it's very difficult because it's like you never know. Like well, if I just answer this one comment, like maybe that will help me make a sale, or you know what I mean, it's very difficult to to do. So I'm going this is going to be a tough one for me. I'm going to have to use this take-home tool for sure.
Speaker 2:Okay, well, but hear me out on this one, right? So the last thing you have to do, based on those questions, you want to come up with your tech game plan and you need to communicate that clearly with anyone who will be affected by this game plan while you're away, and this is so important because it allows everyone to understand and respect the time you will be spending on your devices, on your phone, working whatever have you. For example, I just got back from family vacation and I think this has, like really helped my marriage and my time with my family because, like you said, everyone wants that time and people feel like, if you're on your phone or you're on your device, you know that's not giving them that presence. So, going in, I like made everyone aware that I had two non-negotiable meetings that I had to do and that I had to probably put in about two hours worth of async work, and so that was something that I communicated to Carrie.
Speaker 2:Vice versa, carrie was like I need to skim my emails each night to make sure there's no crisis. We both kind of communicated those expectations and that really helped us feel engaged, connected, on the same page. We didn't also like nag each other when we were on the phone. Titi, you might have to say every night, before you know, we have our drink together. I need to do two hours, or I need an hour on the beach just to myself to be in my phone to do all my comments. Right, the key there is holding yourself accountable to that, whatever time blocks you have appropriately estimated for your minimum bar of connecting and engaging, and then again planning out a good prep plan for to minimize anything you have to do on social media like scheduling posts and all that good stuff. That would be, I think, my little tip.
Speaker 3:I definitely think that's a good one, especially just saying like out from the gate, like hey, this is what I need, this is when we can expect it to happen. I, I like that. I think it'll be well received, as opposed to if I'm just like every so often, just like scrolling through my phone or going through things. So I'm going to take that, I'm going to take that little tool and I like the communication piece of that, so you can find this activity in our show notes along with our episode resources.
Speaker 2:And there you have it, folks, our triple threat for the best vacation ever. Prepare transition and then fully embrace vacation mode. Use the framework to create a system that works for you and your needs and watch. You'll come back feeling more refreshed and recharged instead of needing a break from your break.
Speaker 3:Exactly, and we want to hear all about your future amazing vacation, so be sure to take advantage of our new Text Us feature.
Speaker 2:That's right. You can actually text the show to share any feedback, suggestions, future episode topics you'd like to hear, or even sign up for our email list. Click on the link at the top of our show notes and get texting. We'd love to know if this framework worked for you and where you are heading next. Until next time you're always fine.
Speaker 4:Seriously, you're fine. You're fine because you have the power to access your place of peace anytime you need it. However, if you get stuck, we're right at the palm of your hand to help. Check out our show notes for this week's source list, recommended content and Cabana live group schedule. We'll catch you next week for a brand new episode of You're Always Fine.