Carlo Denis Lardizabal, III

12 SMART TIPS ON SPENDING MORE TIME AWAY FROM THE OFFICE www.paradigmwatches.com CONTENTS 02 INTRODUCTION 05 TIPS ON HOW TO MANAGE SPENDING MORE TIME AWAY FROM THE OFFICE 14 TIPS ON WHAT TO DO WHEN SPENDING MORE TIME AWAY FROM THE OFFICE 25 OUR KEY TAKE AWAYS 12 TIPS ON SPENDING MORE TIME AWAY FROM THE OFFICE 01 INTRODUCTION Making a business out of your enthusiasm is a dream for many people. But after some time, the business side of things takes over and you end up spending an increased amount of time and energy behind your work area instead of enjoying the great outdoors and doing things you love outside the four corners of your workplace. Now, the question is: Are you spending more and more time in the office and less time enjoying your business? The most common way of spending time away from the office is taking a vacation. This is a need for working professionals since this gives the feeling of being rested and relaxed. 12 TIPS ON SPENDING MORE TIME AWAY FROM THE OFFICE 02 However, people have this tendency to feel anxious when they take vacation days or avoid the additional hours at work. They fear that the time away from the office would damage their careers. REMEMBER: THAT IS A MYTH. Bear in mind that taking a vacation or increasing personal time within the 24 hours of a day makes one more productive and successful. These tips are not limited on taking vacation only. It also covers regular things to do and increasing non-work and personal time for yourself within a day. Especially that we have been unaware of our habit of staying longer hours at work than expected. It is time to learn that are of work and life balance. Here are tips on spending more time away from office, away from 12 TIPS ON SPENDING MORE TIME AWAY FROM THE OFFICE 03 work. We will start with six tips on how to manage it with the first four related on taking a vacation and the other two tips if you are running a business with recurring work. 12 TIPS ON SPENDING MORE TIME AWAY FROM THE OFFICE 04 TIPS ON HOW TO MANAGE SPENDING MORE TIME AWAY FROM THE OFFICE 1. Set Expectations At Work That You Have Limited Or Zero Communication This is applicable when taking a vacation. It has been a practice that although we take a time off, we still tell our colleagues that we will still be religiously checking on our email. Some even specifically ask their associates to keep them on the loop when something happens at the workplace! In the event that you do this, people will regard you as though you are as yet working. They'll be 12 TIPS ON SPENDING MORE TIME AWAY FROM THE OFFICE 05 sending emails, leaving messages, and keeping still in the loop – and you'll realize that people will be used to it. It defies the purpose of being gone and taking a time off. If you really want a time off, set clear expectations to your staff, colleagues or even your boss. Explicitly tell your colleagues that you cannot be communicated while you are on your get-away. Send a notice which states that you won't check or will have very limited access on your work email and that your work telephone will be turned off. 2. Delegate This must be one of the simplest and most basic means to get off from the regular rigor of working. Your absence 12 TIPS ON SPENDING MORE TIME AWAY FROM THE OFFICE 06 and being on a vacation can also be treated as a developmental opportunity for your staff. You can assign your conventional duties to them, if needed be. In case you're not on a leadership or management role, do not simply dump your tasks to your colleagues. Talk to your boss and ask for coverage. This also is an opportunity of giving and gaining trust with your colleagues of the same level. Lucky enough if you are on a leadership or management position, the goal is to leave the office in a way that it will run itself even if you are 12 TIPS ON SPENDING MORE TIME AWAY FROM THE OFFICE 07 on a leadership or management position, the goal is to leave the office in a way that it will run itself even if you are away. There should be no reason for folks to contact you. You have your own team and trusted subordinates to do the job for you. They should be trusted to handle things for you whenever you are out. 3. Control Your Mind To Wander Onto Work You can go as far from the workplace and the Internet as you much as you want, and yet you won't be able to enjoy your vacation if your mind is back to what you are missing at work. Your best alternative is to divert your mind with fun activities or energizing accomplishments. Experiment with some new encounters. 12 TIPS ON SPENDING MORE TIME AWAY FROM THE OFFICE 08 Figure out how to scuba plunge, hang with local people, or go on an undeniable enterprise occasion or enjoy a safari trip. Before you know it, work will be the uttermost thing from your brain – and then you will know you have properly switched off. 4. Go Off The Grid For Some Time In the event that you truly don't have the determination to disengage yourself from work deliberately — in spite of your earnest attempts, you’re still taking calls and checking your email – you may need to make more drastic move. What I mean is: take a time off on a place that is absolutely without any access ont the Internet or better yet, technology. 12 TIPS ON SPENDING MORE TIME AWAY FROM THE OFFICE 09 If there is no Wi Fi access or data on the mobile phone; then, that is a game over for work. Avoid activating the roaming feature of your mobile phone. There are plenty of technology-free locations in the world. Aim that for your next spot when having a get away. 5. Schedule Your Social Media Accounts After talking about effective advices on a vacation, this time, let us take a look on optimizing your work. This might be a need to decrease or avoid long hours to give way on your personal life. For someone running a business, do you see yourself ending up to maximizing and spending too much time on your online networking accounts? Has there been too much time within a day of posting on your Facebook page for your 12 TIPS ON SPENDING MORE TIME AWAY FROM THE OFFICE 10 online networking accounts? Has there been too much time within a day of posting on your Facebook page for your advertisements; then, another 30 minutes towards the afternoon uploading pictures to Instagram and tweeting posts on Twitter? This case gives you the experience of hassle of posting your ads on your social media accounts. The solution: plan and pre schedule your posts. With online platforms like Hootsuite and Buffer, you can plan your entire weeks online strategies on your social media accounts in one go. Find an hour or a quiet time within the week and schedule your posts, 12 TIPS ON SPENDING MORE TIME AWAY FROM THE OFFICE 11 images, articles and ads throughout the week. This will mean another administrative task under your plate which most likely occupies a lot of your productive time. 6. Utilize Your Website Most likely, another time wasted yet important task is the considerable measure of time and energy accepting telephone calls and answering to messages with the same old questions and issues. If your customers are constantly contacting you about things like operational hours, prices and other, ask yourself - is this information easily found on my website? The chances are its not if people are picking up the phone to call you about it. Make a rundown of the most common questions and inquiries dealt 12 TIPS ON SPENDING MORE TIME AWAY FROM THE OFFICE 12 with in the workplace and manage by sending details on a web site, an employee Intranet site or a bulletin board. You soon realize see queries you have to deal with in a daily basis. After learning the how part of managing times when you have to spend time away from work, the next step is knowing how to maximize the time out or away from the regular rigor of your job. Let us start with the most common one - taking a vacation; then, let us follow with practical advices to increase your personal activities. The question this time is: What else can I do now that I will have spare time? 12 TIPS ON SPENDING MORE TIME AWAY FROM THE OFFICE 13 TIPS ON WHAT TO DO WHEN SPENDING MORE TIME AWAY FROM THE OFFICE 1. Have a Vacation Abroad One of the best ways of vacation is to travel to another country. Being so far from the workplace can make a mental boundary between you and your work. In addition, your co-workers will understand that you will spend time recharging for yourself which is out of contact from them. You won't even have to tell it to your colleagues: just traveling to another country will bring down their expectations of having the capacity to contact you while you are away. 12 TIPS ON SPENDING MORE TIME AWAY FROM THE OFFICE 14 Traveling gives us the chance to disconnect from our regular rigor of office life. You get to forget your office issues for a few weeks, it can also help you decipher things out that you would not have understood without the distance traveling can give you. We all have hectic schedules, work and a family to take care of, going away alone or with some of our close friends can give you a bit of temporary detachment and perhaps even make you understand how significant these people are. 2. Do Some Exercise Physical activity is essential for both physical and psychological wellness. Taking a few minutes of walk or jog after work or during weekends can have your blood pumping, your 12 TIPS ON SPENDING MORE TIME AWAY FROM THE OFFICE 15 endorphins streaming, and your soul rejuvenating. You'll develop muscles, burn calories, and oxygenate - giving you a discharge from days of stress and anxiety. Regular exercise helps you stay self-controlled, which can be important in a challenging workplace, and can decrease the long-term effects of stress and anxiety as well. Regular exercisers is most likely less stressed about their jobs. You'll also feel better and look nicer, which gives you higher self-esteem and confidence. People who exercise burn additional calories in their bodies and can make their appearance better and toned than people who 12 TIPS ON SPENDING MORE TIME AWAY FROM THE OFFICE 16 do not. In fact, exercise is one among the most necessary need of keeping your body at a healthy weight. It additionally helps you to reduce fat and lower the risk of some diseases. The effort to keep up an allowable weight with exercise decreases the risk of a person from developing certain diseases such as type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure. 3. Take Classes Education does not stop after taking units in college, and shouldn't be restricted to schools and institutions. Successful people make a commitment to always learn. They're always including new developed skills for their resumes and learning new things, theories and ideas of the world around them. Instructional courses, may it be 12 TIPS ON SPENDING MORE TIME AWAY FROM THE OFFICE 17 online or not, aren't particularly difficult to find, either, especially nowadays. Many academic institutions offer courses for free, and you can join local gatherings to find group workshops. And don't underestimate the free trainings and courses offered online. If you have a spare time and a good Internet connection, you can start learning a new skill. Learning new things has also been important for our self-esteem since new things keeps our brain cells active and permits us to succeed at something new, allowing us to grant ourselves pretty good tap on the back! it is also an opportunity to meet new folks, those who has a similar interest or those who can get interested of our own likes and interests. You may have new friends and enhance your life. 12 TIPS ON SPENDING MORE TIME AWAY FROM THE OFFICE 18 4. Volunteer Work Volunteering, regardless of where or how you do it, is helpful for you and your group. Whether you're tidying up a roadway, working in a soup kitchen, or giving mentorship to a gathering of youthful experts, your time goes far toward enhancing the group around you. Volunteering offers important help to individuals to those who are in need, those with worthwhile causes, and those included in poor communities. However the benefits are even greater for you, the volunteer. Volunteering and helping out others 12 TIPS ON SPENDING MORE TIME AWAY FROM THE OFFICE 19 will make you to be relieved from stress, to combat depression, to keep you mentally stirred up, and to give you a sense of purpose. While it’s true that the more you volunteer, the more advantages you’ll experience, volunteering doesn’t need to involve a long-term commitment or to take a large amount of your energy and time. Giving in simple ways can help others those who are needy which improves both your social and mental health. It can be a significant networking opportunities, acquainting you with other individuals who, somehow, can help you drive your career and life forward. 5. Enjoy Hobbies. Focusing solely on work might appear like a fast track to success. With 12 TIPS ON SPENDING MORE TIME AWAY FROM THE OFFICE 20 nothing disturbing you, you can invest your energy into your job and do it more efficiently --- you can do a job for a week which most people normally do for two weeks. But it also has a nasty downside; it can give you stress, can lead you to burnout, and can prevent you from creating competencies in any other areas. Finding and practicing your hobby, on the other hand, helps you release stress, put your job in perspective, and build skills which can complement to the tasks you use at work. It's a breath of fresh air that maintains you grounded, and if it is a social hobby, also gives networking opportunities. Hobbies give information and skills that successively provides a wider perspective on life. The logic is that the same as why individuals keep in 12 TIPS ON SPENDING MORE TIME AWAY FROM THE OFFICE 21 form or pay time with friends. the various aspects of your life are all connected. better health allows you to focus longer and your friends will guide you with things that you simply cannot handle yourself. 6. Invest Time With Friends And Family Your job is not everything. Focusing too a lot on your work is self-sabotage, no matter how counterintuitive that would possibly sound. If you desire to be successful in life, your personal relationships should be set as a priority: your bonding and relationship with your friends and family. No matter how much you choose to succeed and to climb up the corporate ladder quickly, you can't forget about your friends and family to do it. 12 TIPS ON SPENDING MORE TIME AWAY FROM THE OFFICE 22 form or pay time with friends. the various aspects of your life are all connected. better health allows you to focus longer and your friends will guide you with things that you simply cannot handle yourself. If you are not pretty sure where to start out, think of doing something small: dinner at the table, a board games on an evening. If games aren’t your family’s idea of a pretty good time, try considering outside activities - perhaps a walk to the park. Even mini tasks around the house can be an excellent way to get everybody to have 12 TIPS ON SPENDING MORE TIME AWAY FROM THE OFFICE 23 an involvement. Encourage your family to have some time together by finding opportunities to do things that everybody would have an interest in. it might pose a challenge at the start, however eventually it become habit and bond will follow. www.paradigmwatches.com 12 TIPS ON SPENDING MORE TIME AWAY FROM THE OFFICE 24 OUR KEY TAKE AWAYS If you don't spend your free time like this, it doesn't necessarily mean that you have no chance of being successful. However, choosing up some of these techniques can enhance your abilities, improve your mindset, and increase your network to levels that will expand your chances for success at work. Start practicing a few of them into your free time routines and you may just be amazed at the results. Once again, let us have a recap. On how to manage spending more time away from the office: 1. Set expectations at work that you have a limited communication 2. Delegate 12 TIPS ON SPENDING MORE TIME AWAY FROM THE OFFICE 25 4. Go off the grid for some time 5. Schedule your social media accounts 6. Utilize your Website Now that you learned managing how to do it to decrease time at work and have more time at your personal life, here are specifics on what to do: 1. Have a vacation abroad 2. Exercise 3. Take classes 4. Do volunteer work 5. Enjoy your hobbies 6. Invest Time With Friends and Family “You will never feel truly satisfied by work until you are satisfied by life.” Heather Schuck,The Working Mom Manifesto 12 TIPS ON SPENDING MORE TIME AWAY FROM THE OFFICE 26