Going on a holiday? Here’s how to prep ??

Don’t be alarmed but… It’s T-shirt weather here in the UK !!!

You know what that means? It won’t be long before we all start to come out of hibernation – ready for a Mediterranean summer holiday.

I always say to myself, this part of the world may not be a tropical oasis, but at least we live a stone's throw away from a load of places that are.

Anyway, usually by now most of us have started planning which European country we’ll jet off to.

Back when we were in our early twenties, our biggest worry was getting the weekend off work, finding the cheapest flight and booking into the beach club that does the €2 cocktails.

But it’s not easy as it once was. Being a business owner makes things a little trickier.

Not only do you need to think about accommodation, transport & suitcase essentials… Now you have to take into account how your biz will survive while you’re away.

I’ve spoken to countless biz owners that have admitted it puts them off booking anything cause they’re worried about it going to shit while they’re off having a break.

To which I say…

F*** that!

Owning our own businesses should mean freedom.

It shouldn’t mean missing out on holidays because of what if’s.

All we have to do to make sure things DON’T crash and burn, is plan ahead a little more than usual.

And it’s totally doable.

So to help you get started, I’ve compiled a little list of things to do before you jet set outta here, to make you feel more at ease & ready for countless sunkissed hours on the beach.

So you can feel confident to leave the laptop at home and fully immerse yourself in vacay mode.

Biz Owner Vacay Checklist

1. Email Signature Message

Add your upcoming holiday dates to your email signature NOW.

It’s a subtle way of reinforcing to your clients that you’re taking some time off and won’t be available. It gives them plenty of time to get things to you before you’re on airplane mode.

2. Out of Office Rules

Your out of office (auto reply) should set clear expectations.

Don’t make any promises for the day you return to work.

You’ll have stuff to catch up on and telling people you’ll get back to them THAT day is unrealistic and it’ll cause overwhelm.

If you're away for 7 days, tell them you're away for 10.

Ease yourself back into it.

3. Socials Auto Responders

Set up autoresponders on all of your socials while you’re away.

There’s no need to ghost anyone. Let people know that you’ve received the message loud & clear but won’t be able to respond until you’re back. Don’t leave ‘em on read.

4. Schedule Content

That’s why there are so many amazing scheduling tools out there. Use them! Have all your content planned out and scheduled before you go. You can even schedule stories on IG.

And make sure you note on that content that you won’t be getting back to people’s messages until you’re back.

5. Have Your Backup / OBM or VA

Have someone that you can rely on if something urgent comes up.

This is why having a VA or OBM is so important.

If they see something that needs to be dealt with straight away, they’re there. Like an emergency contact for your biz.

And last but definitely not least…

6. Relax & Enjoy

You work hard, you deserve a break.

Give yourself this time to really rest, you’ll feel all the better when you return to work refreshed & inspired and ready to get back into it.

There’s little point in spending the money if your mind is elsewhere the entire time.

Hopefully these tips have you feeling a little more at ease & ready for that trip away.

Try to remind yourself why you started the business in the first place – freedom and flexibility, remember? (As well as being extremely talented at what you do of course.)

I can already picture it – you, lounging under an orange beach umbrella sipping on an Aperol Spritz with a bowl of chips, plate of pasta and 3 pastries to choose from. Not a second thought for the biz back home.