If you’re fortunate to be able to work from anywhere, a change of scenery can make you more productive and give you a new lease on work. A new trend in remote work are “workcations,” which is basically working while on vacation. In most cases, the employee, not the employer pays the expenses, so why would you want to work remotely on vacation?
There are benefits of workcations.
A workcation is “work away from work.” It’s a geographical separation from your home base.
Renting a cabin in the woods to work gives you new scenery each day. Nature can be grounding and relaxing. If you live in a big city, getting away from the normal can be re-energizing. Some people may even go on a workcation to get away from the heat (or the cold) of the urban jungle.
Heading to the mountains or to the other hemisphere can be rewarding if you can’t stand the summer temperatures in Oklahoma or Texas. You don’t have to work the entire day of a workcation, so you can get out and try new restaurants and meet people when your workday is over. It can give you a new perspective.
When should you prioritize a vacation and steer clear of workcations trend?
Workcations might be trending, but the jury is out on how valuable they are to employees. This trend runs counter-intuitive to work-life balance.
When you take your work with you on vacation, you never truly get away from the office. The ability to completely unplug is rare. Taking a workcation instead of a vacation doesn’t give you that opportunity.
Vacations aren’t just a generous benefit. They have a purpose.
The best athletes can’t train day-in and day-out. Their bodies need a break. The best employees need mental time off and detachment from work.
In some industries, vacations benefit the employers. Employees who never take time off are less satisfied with their job. They may find ways to steal from the company. Employers may not realize how much work these employees do. When an employee takes a vacation, the employer can better judge their workload and make preparations for a “what if” situation if that employee were gone tomorrow.
Before you take that workcation, think about it carefully. It may benefit the employer more than you. Employees need a break.
Don’t blur the work-life balance.
Dawn Brotherton is a Sr. Staff Writer at The American Genius with an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Central Oklahoma. She is an experienced business writer with over 10 years of experience in SEO and content creation. Since 2017, she has earned $60K+ in grant writing for a local community center, which assists disadvantaged adults in the area.
