The 4 Steps to Rejuvenating Paid Time Off (And the Attitude That Comes With It)
By Marney Andes
I’ve had the opportunity to take a two-week vacation to my second home in Mexico before starting my new position. And while this time off wasn’t paid, as I started preparing for my new role, with a new organization I began reflecting on how I’d addressed vacations or during my employment, vacations using paid time off (aka PTO and a term mostly used by those who are employed by an organization, certainly my dad never used the term PTO as a self-employed farmer) in the past, and how we as employees, managers, and larger leaders can look at PTO as a whole.
1. Find Your PTO “Why”
A lot of times, when I ask what somebody’s doing on their PTO, they’ll come back with “We’re taking the kids to Disneyland.” Though they’d technically answered the question, I started realizing that what I’d really wanted to know, and what I’d typically ask myself when taking PTO-- was why they were doing it.
When we’re planning a PTO, primarily one that’s meant to be relaxing, we have to be intentional in knowing the deeper meaning of it. For my PTO, I’m in the midst of:
Celebrating the launch of my new book
Appreciating a new step in my self-branding and my goals of expanding my messages to a broader audience
Continuing my commitment to self-care and self-development by doing things like running on the beach, reading by the pool, writing on my rooftop, and learning new things (like learning how to surf)
Appreciating time with good friends and neighbors in Cerritos Beach
Experiencing beauty (and food) in nearby towns of El Pescadero and Todos Santos
Mentally preparing to take on a bigger role and bigger responsibilities when I return home
Now, this is just me. If you’re planning on taking a PTO, it’s not important how extravagant it is, how much money you spend, or how many pictures you get up on Instagram. What’s important is protecting the concept of needing time for yourself, whatever that may mean to you.
Sometimes, you need technology-free time with your family in an Airbnb off in the mountains. Other times, you may want to get far, far away, like I am at my second home. Whatever the reason may be, knowing your “why” is vital in ensuring you’re being intentional in the way you take a break. Otherwise, if you’re getting away just to “get away”, you might come back only to feel like you need a vacation from your vacation.
Your “why” might also incorporate the organization of your PTO-- which is vital in making or breaking an incredible experience. If planning the vacation or getaway brings you joy, then do it. If delegating your plans to somebody else and doing an all-expense-paid trip is your thing, then go for it.
Some questions you could ask yourself to get started might be:
What am I hoping to get out of my PTO?
What would a successful PTO look like to me?
How will this time off feed me (not deplete me)?
2. Figure Out Where You’re Going (and Why)
Now that you know your “why,” you can figure out where you want to go.
For over a year now, I’ve been working remotely and with my new role, will be onboarded remotely, so I’ve spent a lot of time in my home in Denver. For me, it was important to get out and have a new space in which to come back for two weeks before going back to my home where I’ll be both living and working in.
I decided to invest in my vacation home in a small town in Mexico because it was the perfect mix of getaway and hometown. It’s about 45 minutes north of Cabo San Lucas and it’s small enough where people will know you when you come back to return. What really pulled me towards it was that I felt the same comfort I’d felt going back to my hometown of Wallace, Nebraska, so with the extra perks of being in a beautiful location by the beach. After coining it “The Wallace, Nebraska of Mexico” (seriously, just map it and you’ll see for yourself), I knew that it was special and that I wanted to invest in a space there to have for myself whenever I wanted.
If we have a question, we can walk right outside of our house and ask somebody-- that’s the type of community there is. I’ve spent hours and hours just grocery shopping amongst locals, made lifelong friends who I get lunch with whenever I’m down there, and feel a similar community that I did back home in Nebraska, even though it’s several thousand miles away.
We’ve made friends with Chef Tony (a local chef at the nearby Casa Maya Restaurant) who is always crafting and cooking new recipes for residents and visitors.
While in the States, I keep in touch with friends who are both local developers (and boss women, which I love), so that when it’s time to visit Cerritos, we can visit about their latest property plans and have lunch together.
While reading on the beach one afternoon, I met a local masseuse, Sandra, who brought her table to my home, took care to give me a sport massage, and followed it with a nice conversation afterwards, talking about her business and her deep-rooted interest in natural products to bring out one’s aura.
She has become a friend and my “go to” to ensure all of the other physical activity I participate in (running, biking, surfing) can continue, rather than cease, because my body is too broken or “beaten up” to go on.
For me, the choice of coming here for PTO brings me joy, knowing I’ll be able to step out of my home for a few weeks to see some similar faces while also getting the chance to continue practicing self-development and having a reset before a big transition.
So, when you’re planning time away, I want you to look inside yourself and figure out where you want to go. If you have a vacation home, try to remember why you purchased it in the first place. Was it for the neighborhood, the sites, the location, or the seclusion? If you don’t have a vacation home but plan on getting away in an Airbnb, what type of space do you want to stay in? Do you want a cool, unique experience inside a spunky treehouse or a cozy log cabin? Or, do you care more about venturing around a new town, finding some local restaurants, and meeting new people? Would you rather sit by the beach for a week straight, encapsulated in a good book, forgetting about everything, or do you want to adventure around nature and visit parks?
For some, PTO looks like spending all day relaxing; massages, facials, and spas. For some, PTO means working on another endeavor that you’re working towards. In other cases, paid time off means that somebody needs to provide care with a friend or family member in their life.
And even if you’re staying home, there are ways you can create a staycation that makes you feel inspired and invigorated all the same. What can you do to make your experience different than when you’re working day-to-day?
3. “Work While Others Are On Break”
If you’ve read my book, Start with the Give-Me Shots, you might remember that Lesson 4 is “Work While Others Are On Break.”
But wait, Marney, you just said that I need to commit to being on vacation instead of working?
Well, there’s a difference: it’s work on yourself. I’ve always wanted to surf, so on my PTO, I learned how to surf. I met with my life coach virtually to check-in, and have spent lots of time writing. It was actually on the rooftop of my home that I wrote a couple of chapters in Start with the Give-Me Shots, and it’s a space I've loved to dedicate to doing my writing-- whatever it may be for.
Before I left the States, Lisa, my spiritual life coach, had suggested to me to ask myself what I’d be taking with me and what I’d be leaving behind as I transition jobs. I spent time pondering that question and reflecting on past experiences and how I would move forward after I got back.
Even if you’re taking a PTO without a “real” rhyme or reason, there’s always a way you can work while you’re on break to help better develop your relationship with yourself, the people around you, and your job. By this point, you’ll know 1. why you’re taking your PTO, and 2. where you’re going, so it’s important to understand what you’ll be doing as you’re dedicating this time and space for the betterment of yourself so you can come back from it rejuvenated and ready to hit the ground running.
4. Establish Your “PTO Attitude”
I imagine that in generations before ours, when people stepped away from their desks, there was no way of contacting them until they got back to the office. Their employees had to wait to contact them about things until they physically got back to the office to bring anything to their attention. Nothing was connecting you back to the office.
Now, it seems we’ve become a society that’s working all of the time. Because of this, it takes a lot more energy to intentionally leave things behind, as our phones and computers are typically an arm’s length away, even on vacation.
The fact of the matter is that no matter what you’re doing, you deserve that time away from the office, and you deserve to know that your PTO is no better or worse than the next person’s. Going to the beach for a PTO doesn’t mean you had a better vacation or time off than somebody who had to take care of their relative. What makes it the same is that you’re separating your work from what other passions, aspirations, desires, connections, and needs in your life. That’s different for everybody, and it’s for nobody to judge.
(I’ll say it again: social media is a constant comparison tool with things like this. Pictures of beach vacations might look fantastic, but if that person hasn’t asked themselves why they’re taking this break and why they’re snapping all of these pictures, they might not have any better of a time than they do on any typical day. In fact, I struggled a bit during the first week of my vacation, spending far too much time debating what pictures or videos I would post on my Instagram account. Then, it hit me. I was going to post what I wanted, what I thought was interesting, what inspired me or made me laugh. But first and foremost, I was posting it for me. Once I made that decision, then posting turned from being a task to being a celebration.)
The last message I sent to my team before leaving the company and for my PTO was a message of celebration: I was excited for the newcomer entering my former role, and reflecting on what I’ve learned. It was a great way to end a wonderful experience at my former company and a great way to start a 2-week stay in my vacation home amongst people that I love.
I used what I brought and left what I didn’t need, being intentional with what I wanted out of my time there. As I wrap up my time here in Mexico and transition into my new job next week, I’ll focus on intentionality, self-reflection, and improvement.
Because being in tune with why you’re taking your time off in the first place makes all of the difference.