By Justine Clay
I apologize for my rather lenghtly absence, but I’ve been on vacation. It was just a little trip home to England to visit my family, but I decided not to take the laptop (though I confess I did have my ipad) and take a week off. Novel concept, huh!
As a solopreneur, I totally appreciate how difficult it can be to up and leave your business. I mean, how will your clients manage? What if something goes horribly wrong? We’re all great at imagining worse-case scenarios but with the right planning you can take your holiday with a clear conscience. Here’s how I did it (and I came back to an in-tact business):
1) Give your active clients plenty of notice. Tell them when you’ll be gone, for how long and assure them that you will take care of any upcoming needs that they have before you leave. Not only does this give you both time to take care of business, but it encourages your client to plan ahead.
2) Dot your ‘I’s’ and cross your ‘T’s’. You need to follow through on your promise that you’ll have everything taken care of before you leave. This includes provisions for any work that you discussed would be happening while you’re away.
3) Record an out of office voicemail and turn on your out of office email reply. These should clearly state how long you’re out for, if there’s someone they can contact in your absence, or if there’s an emergency number. Even if you’re checking both, it’s prudent to give clients an immediate heads up.
4) Follow up with all clients as soon as you return. I’m willing to bet my bottom dollar that the place didn’t burn down while you were gone!
The simple fact is that we all need and deserve a holiday. There are no additional team points for not taking care of yourself. Fully enjoy the moment and you’ll come back energized, full of ideas and raring to go. Everyone wins!
I’m attaching a few pics from my trip (the only thing I used my iphone for)
