Double Check your Checklist
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Summer is around the corner.
I have two questions for you:
Are you going to take a vacation?
Are you going to truly engage in it?
I asked myself these very same questions last year.
I knew the answer to my first question was a definite yes, but I wasn’t so sure about my second answer.
I wrestled with why as I was getting ready for our flight, and I wrote out the framework for the post below.
So why did I wait to post it until now?
Well, because my Bronx-raised Mother has taught me well – you don’t broadcast that your house is going to be empty before a two-week vacation…
I hope you’ll find my musings from last year helpful … here it goes:
In less than 36 hours I will be on a plane with my husband Jim staring out the window to watch as my daily responsibilities shrink to the size of matchbox cars below. All of my things, meticulously packed:
Passport?
Check.
Reading materials?
Check.
Toothbrush?
Check.
So why can’t I shake the feeling that I’m leaving something behind?
Oh, right… because for weeks I’ve been observing the telltale signs that not only will I forget the most important thing I should pack… I will do it intentionally.
This scenario has been playing out in my mind like a chess match.
I know this game well, and I have learned how to read the board.
I can see the move my ‘Inner Saboteur’ is planning from a mile away:
To coax me into leaving my attention behind, locked in my office among the zillions of emails and voicemails. My Saboteur’s demands seem more important than my upcoming adventure.
My opponent is incessant, logical to a fault, and above all… cunning.
As my opposing beliefs advance on her, she yawns lazily and swats away thoughts like “I deserve a break” and “I will feel so refreshed after some time away” as if they were mere pawns.
I thought, “Hey! This has nothing to do with being emotional or weak! Even electrical circuits protect themselves from overload by indulging in ‘TRIPS’! Ha ha.”
My Inner Saboteur has finally met her match.
And you have front row seats to a counter-move that would drop even Bobby Fisher’s jaw.
A move that has been so obvious…
A move that has been right under my nose… Aha!
When my clients are serious about achieving a particular goal, what do I advise them to do?
Voice their intentions to someone they respect!
That’s right. I have decided to send this note to my close colleagues and friends so I will be held publically accountable.
When you ask me if I was able to unplug during my vacation…
My answer will be a heck of a lot better than: “Uhhhhh….well… kinda…”
Here it goes:
I, Abby Donnelly, will disengage from emails and voicemails and the incessant work chatter in my head and put my full attention on this vacation.