No one really wants to work during their holiday, but sometimes situations arise that have to be dealt with and there’s just no other way of sorting them out.
While virtually anyone from a screenwriter to a master of engineering management might find themselves in this situation, it’s is especially likely to be the case for self employed entrepreneurs or those who do most of their work remotely, as regular hours don’t apply as strongly, and projects simply need to get done when they need to get done.
But if you do find yourself needing to work while travelling, there are a few tips for making sure that it doesn’t ruin your whole holiday.
Here they are.
Agree on your exact projects and deadlines in advance
If you work remotely, or have a freelance working relationship with several clients, it might be that work comes up almost spontaneously and people have expectations of what you’ll be able to achieve on short notice that might not always be reasonable.
One way to make your holiday isn’t destroyed by these last minute demands is to have a discussion with your clients or employer in advance, outlining exactly what you’ll be able to get done during your holiday period. Of course, you’ll also want to be sure to alert them that you will in fact be on holiday.
This is one way of forestalling new assignments, tasks, or expectations arising when you’re away. Once you’ve closed the floodgates and ensured that you won’t have any surprise work to deal with while away, you can focus on getting the agreed upon tasks out of the way as quickly and in as pain-free a manner as possible.
Wake up early
Many people take the opportunity to sleep in when on holiday, but if you’ve got work assignments to take care of, you should not be one of those people. It’s simple, really. When travelling, you’ll want to take advantage of the local sights and culture.
That takes place during the day.
Finally, you’ll want to spend your nights eating good food and drinking good wine, not to mention laughing and sharing anecdotes with any travelling companions who may be by your side.
That takes place during the evening.
The only time that you have available to get your work done without it directly interfering with your holiday plans and making you miserable, is in the morning before the adventures begin.
Decide exactly how many hours you’ll commit to a task, and then wake up early and put in those hours before beginning the rest of your day.
Plan your outlines and structures in advance
There aren’t many things more likely to ruin your time estimates, plans, and cause you unneeded stress, than having to spend extra time figuring out just what you need to do and how you should do it.
Ideally, you’ll want to do all the prep and planning for your project at home, before leaving for your holiday.
This allows you to dive into things with ruthless efficiency during those precious morning hours, and get some quality work done in a hurry, rather than having to spend unplanned hours stressing and trying to work out the best way to proceed with your tasks.
