Focus on Your Priorities & Communicating with Your Staff
Listed priorities are even more important when you know you have an upcoming vacation or trip. That way, you as a CEO, can ensure you work on the most critical tasks before leaving–or at least you’ll have enough preparation done in case something comes up while you’re away. The last thing you want to do is waste time hunting down information to help you make a critical decision while your friends and family are begging you to put the phone down and join them. Put yourself in a position where you can be briefed by your staff, make a decision, and get back to your vacation. Anything that isn’t urgent or essential should be delegated to trusted members of your senior staff. If someone serves as acting CEO in your absence, that person should be able to triage anything that arises and decide if it can be handled by someone less senior or if they need to contact you. Long-term projects with no immediate deadline can be scheduled on your calendar for after your return.Pass The Baton
Delegating tasks before you go on vacation is crucial. Try to hand off some responsibilities to others. Hopefully, you work as a team and your team members will be happy to help when you need the assistance. If you have the time, schedule individual meetings with these people to ensure that they know what you want done and how to do it. You should run them through the appropriate resources and make them feel comfortable with the tasks at hand. The last thing you want is a stressed-out employee who does not know what they’re doing. You want to reduce all incoming calls from people who are confused or frantic. Additionally, let your high-profile clients know who they need to contact in your absence with any questions or concerns. Don’t be afraid to put the responsibility in the hands of others!Be Strategic About Your Downtime
While on vacation, you’ll want to be strategic about your downtime. Are you an early riser? Use this to your advantage to get work done before anyone else is up. If you’re a CEO on a family vacation and you have children who take naps, use this time to make urgent phone calls or send work emails. Maybe you have a date night planned with your spouse and they take longer to get ready. You can use that time to your advantage. No matter how many activities you have planned on your vacation, there are always moments of downtime. Make the most of this time, even if it’s just 30 minutes or an hour.Plan Around Wi-Fi
You don’t want to assume that Wi-Fi will always be available for you when you need it. Depending on where you are in the world, it may be difficult to get access to strong Wi-Fi wherever you are. Sometimes, the location promises Wi-Fi, but the connection is not reliable and spotty. Additionally, you’ll want to factor in travel times and try to plan the work you can do without Wi-Fi during that time. If you have a home base, like a hotel or Airbnb, this is the most reliable form of Wi-Fi you can count on. Otherwise, it could be a good idea to download a Wi-Fi finder so that you can plan where to get online without worrying about it last minute. By using a Wi-Fi finder, you can plan ahead of time and prioritize your tasks without stress.Set An Out-Of-Office Message
This is an excellent feature of some email providers like Gmail or Outlook. They actually allow you to craft an out-of-office message while you are on vacation. You may already be aware of this, as it’s an automated message that goes out to anyone that attempts to email you or schedule a meeting with you. However, we are here to remind you to set it up, in case you forgot! Ensure that it includes some key information such as- Exact times and dates you’ll be gone
- When you will return
- Names and contact info of the people who are assisting you in your absence
