The Danes take it in July. Italians do it in August. Americans often leave it on the table, or never fully partake. Vacation time is viewed in different ways across different cultures. A July 2023 article in Fast Company magazine pointed out that time away from work combats burnout and will make you more creative and effective when you return. This time away equates to truly unplugging from work.
Van Meter has decided to do it better. They offer tenured employees an opportunity to take a sabbatical. Often associated with the world of higher education, former CEO Barry Boyer started the concept almost 20 years ago. Current CEO Lura McBride has continued the practice. “We want our employee-owners to be their personal best so they can be their professional best. One way this can be achieved is an extended time away from work ,” she said.
During their sabbaticals, Van Meter employees take a month away from work -- and are truly out of office. They do not have access to email or business technology or things that tie them to work. The benefits of sabbaticals for Van Meter are reduced burn-out and reduced turnover. Customers and the business benefit. One retired employee I spoke with shared that he had considered retiring early, but after enjoying his sabbatical, stayed another five years, and experienced a great deal of professional satisfaction by doing so. He had long-term relationships with several important end-users, and not only extended his time and commitment to Van Meter, but he also successfully transitioned the accounts to his successor.
Van Meter has additional best practices around time away that sync with their culture and values. For example, after 5 p.m. and until 7 a.m. the next morning, colleagues limit work emails and calls unless it’s a critical customer or company need. As a general rule, no collaboration occurs after hours. The same holds true for weekends. Work hard and be fully present while at work, then step away and don’t feel the tug of work while at home. Once this becomes a common practice, everyone benefits. More defined boundaries between work life and personal life is a best practice.
Other best practices include leaders checking in with their people on a consistent basis. This, too, reduces burnout and turnover. Overall, the culture of care for employee well-being is manifested not only by engaged leaders, but the prioritization of time away.
Vacations and time away benefit the business in other ways, too. Want to keep your employees physically and mentally healthy? Help them reduce stress and increase motivation? Encourage them to take vacation time.
Alina Health, Feb. 2024, stated the following seven benefits of true vacation time.
1. Improved physical health
2. Improved mental health
3. Increased sense of well-being
4. Increased motivation
5. Improved family relationships
6. Less burnout
7. Increased happiness
Travel can give you a new perspective, and an appreciation of other cultures. Working and collaborating with colleagues from countries as diverse as Denmark, The Netherlands, and Italy, as well as the United Kingdom, Spain, Columbia, and Mexico has offered me exposure to different perspectives and different ways of doing things. The European approach to vacations is a best practice that has demonstrable value. Taking three weeks off to travel and spend time with family and friends, truly unplugging from work, has visibly resulted in happy, creative colleagues, excited to return to work. In Latin America, family time and weekends take high priority, and allows for greater focus and intensity during time allocated for work.
The concept of being fully present, motivated, and engaged while at work, and doing the same while at home generates better results wherever you are. Consider adopting best practices from other cultures, and other companies. You can do downtime better.
Desiree Grace is an advisor, consultant, and mentor with 30+ years as a senior leader in the electrical distribution and manufacturing sectors. Currently, Desiree is general manager of Flex-Wind North America and an associate with River Heights Consulting. She builds brands, grows revenue and motivates teams, facilitates strategy and execution, and offers special expertise in helping offshore companies enter the North American market. An experienced professional who enables win-win outcomes for organizations and their partners, find her on LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/in/desireecgrace.
