Personal Growth Lessons: Key Takeaways from My Vacation Getaway

It all started with an idea (my daughter’s) to get tickets to the ABBA Voyage virtual concert in London. It then morphed into a full-blown itinerary to visit our favorite spots in London (first time back post-pandemic) and hit some of the top-rated tourist attractions in Ireland (first time vising.) Travel is a beautiful thing. And yes, the grass is greener (literally) across the pond. I usually plan my big trips a year in advance. This way, I always have something exciting to look forward to. Taking vacations and travelling is a way to stretch myself out of my comfort zones. I seek adventures to open my mind and fuel my wanderlust. I feel every trip is as much about exploring new, or beloved, places as it is about taking a journey within myself. Unplugging and unwinding rejuvenate my brainpower allowing me to do the harder things with a new perspective and fresh ideas. Here are my 5 key getaway takeaways:

#1 Spontaneity is the Spice of Life

“I am all in favor of spontaneity, providing it is carefully planned and ruthlessly controlled.” ~ John Gielgud

This has always been my motto. I am a planner. I tend to plan things well ahead. I like to plan activities down to a T, no detail too small, and putting together contingency strategies. I surprised myself that I so readily ditched any planning in favor of spontaneity and letting my daughter be the point person. It was a precious gift learning to be the best version of myself as a follower. This trip was all about “carpe diem,” seizing the opportunity to spend quality time with my daughter, following her lead. I had a blast. Thus, I hereby declare that the remainder of 2023 will be my Carpe Diem year, living in the moment, seizing opportunities, and relishing the unplanned. My new moto is “go with the flow” YOLO.

#2 Work-Life Balance is not “One Size Fits All”

“There’s no such thing as work-life balance. There are work-life choices, and you make them, and they have consequences” ~ Jack Welch

I’d say I have a good work-life balance. Every day, I make sure I take quality time off for myself. To me, work-life balance is the ability to structure work around my personal and professional priorities. And thus, when on vacation, I am never actually fully away. In earlier days, shaping my career in Human Resources, it just felt that it was my responsibility to be on call for emergencies and to put out proverbial fires. Then starting my own executive and career coaching practice, I definitely bought into “hustle culture” hook, line and sinker. I have convinced myself that as a small business owner I couldn’t slack off and go anywhere without my laptop; that I must check work emails and be available to take clients’ calls. Well, I left my laptop at home. Since my work can be done entirely on my phone, I did work during my vacation. However, I learned that mobile-only work did force me to exercise better judgment when managing my availability and prioritizing Proactive Downtime.

#3 In with the New

“We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we’re curious, and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths.” ~ Walt Disney

The ABBA Voyage concert is the best thing I’ve ever seen, a concern like no other. It is truly a tremendous feat of creative and technological innovation. I was a happy participant being led down new paths experiencing live music like never before. The Abbatars (ABBA avatars) felt so real. I could have sworn that Agnetha, Björn, Benny, and Anni-Frid were standing right in front of me. People all around me kept gasping with amazement saying “can you believe what we are seeing?” For 90 minutes I was in wonderland. Some might say that the show takes out the human element. I feel lucky to have been there getting a taste for the future.

#4 In with the Old

“A people without the knowledge of their past history, origin and culture is like a tree without roots.” ~ Marcus Garvey

Our world is beautiful in the diversity of people and cultures. When traveling in Europe, history is all around you; not my personal history nor my roots, but nonetheless important to me as a citizen of the world. It was my first visit to Ireland, and what struck me the most was the efforts to preserve the Irish language, or Irish Gaelic. I wasn’t expecting to see signs in Gaelic on road signs, public transportation, and in most public places. Irish is considered an endangered language by UNESCO. Today, there are more people learning the language than there are native speakers whose Irish is their first language. My personal connection to the topic is that I am a native speaker of Hebrew, the only successfully revived language in history. I understand the deep meaning a language has to its people, and the value of preserving old languages. I hope that Irish, this beautiful language, one of the oldest languages still spoken in the world, will be revived.

#5 Nature Connection

“There is a way that nature speaks, that land speaks. Most of the time we are simply not patient enough, quiet enough, to pay attention to the story.” ~ Linda Hogan

I am a nature lover, forever marveling at the mysteries of nature and in awe of its beauty. Nature inspires humility and wisdom. It makes it clear that we each occupy but a tiny space in the vast, great outdoors. I felt it acutely when vising the Cliffs of Moher, nature’s masterpiece. The sheer magnificence of the cliffs: the towering heights, crashing waves, breathtaking views, and the endless unedited beauty provided me with the perspective of the infinite extent of space and time. Witnessing the natural wonders of the world, one cannot help but find that while we are all different, each creature has its place and role in the universe, and that we are all interconnected.

While I encourage my clients to take time off, I also emphasize the importance of making it a daily activity, not just a scheduled event a couple times a year. Once a day, take 30 minutes to do something you find enjoyable and rejuvenating. Make it your precious time to detach from all and any deadlines, stresses, or worries. Get in the habit of taking a chill break once a day. But do schedule that time off work. Use your vacation days!