How do you relax if you are your own boss? For entrepreneurs, taking holidays can be as stressful as not taking them, worrying about every minute spent away from your business. A recent survey of 500 entrepreneurs by Virgin Money UK found that taking time off for holidays was the top challenge when founding a startup. Another study, by retail bank Aldermore, found more than half of the UK’s small business owners take fewer than six days away from work a year and one in five takes no time off at all.
Some entrepreneurs, though, have found a solution that works for them: going on leave with colleagues, clients, or even other entrepreneurs. There is an array of trips now aimed specifically at business founders, from co-working cruises and Trans-Siberian rail journeys, to retreats that focus on yoga, coaching or mountain climbing.
Psychologist Ute Stephan, a professor at Aston Business School, says it’s understandable that entrepreneurs find it difficult to take a break. “Work is often very meaningful [to them] and close to their identity,” she says. “You get the best of both worlds if you co-locate yourself with other entrepreneurs in a more relaxed atmosphere. Feedback of other entrepreneurs can be difficult to come by on a day-to-day basis.”
But isn’t such “holidaying” still working, in a way? Stephan says that switching off completely is crucial to relax, recharge and avoid burnout. “Physically removing yourself from work is a good strategy if you want to come up with good ideas, or think strategically,” she says. “Holidays work like a reset button, which interrupt a building up of physiological strain and increase productivity.”
Here are WIRED's choice of trips tailored for time-poor entrepreneurs.
Entrepreneur: Julia Gifford, co-founder Truesix, Latvia Location: Tuscany, Italy Cost: £230
Since co-founding her content marketing business in 2017, Julia Gifford admits she hasn’t felt able to take time off. But she recently took her team of four to a vineyard in Tuscany and says the “workation” was a good compromise. “You can have a week away and not beat yourself up about not keeping up with your business goals,” she says. “There’s a stigma around being constantly ‘on’ and productive as a founder.”
Gifford and her co-founder wanted to write an e-course to offer to clients they couldn’t work with directly. The team turned off their emails and used time-tracking apps to monitor progress on daily goals. They found productivity increased by 17 percent, despite only working five hours per day – the rest of the time was spent sightseeing or enjoying meals. “Removing ourselves from the usual office environment definitely played a major role,” Gifford says about how much they got done. “It was also a really great team-building experience.”
Entrepreneur: Chris Drummond, founder of Good Things Brewing Co, Brighton Location: French Alps Cost: £2,000
Holidaying with other entrepreneurs has become something of an annual tradition for Chris Drummond. He’s attended a three-day camp in Sussex, run by the Happy Startup School, every year since 2014, and has travelled to the French Alps with them twice. The week-long trips include activities such as yoga, white-water rafting, hiking and e-bike tours. There’s no internet, workshops or co-working sessions, but that doesn’t mean work doesn’t happen.
“Being in an awe-inspiring mountain range, where you’ve got nothing around you bar these people you’ve just met, it seems to trigger some really interesting conversations,” Drummond says. “My first year was really painful because it made me realise I’d spent 15 years in a career that I really hated. But that’s why I was there. Every retreat brings new questions and new connections.”
Entrepreneur: Brenda Gabriel, PR Executive, London Location: Miami, US Cost: $7,500 (£5,600)
Spending time and money away from your business can seem hard to justify. But Brenda Gabriel, a publicist and mum of three, says investing in her personal development has been transformational. “It broke a pattern of putting everyone else before myself. As a working mother, you always feel guilty. But actually taking a stand and going away by myself… that was huge for me.”
Miami was Gabriel’s second retreat this year – the first was to LA in January. The group of seven entrepreneurs spent two days working with a coach to overcome barriers to success and build confidence. “Those blockers manifest in ways like undercharging for services or being reluctant to chase a late-paying client,” Gabriel says. She admits she was at times embarrassed to be so open, but “to be in the same room as someone saying, ‘I’m scared too’ or ‘I have also this problem’, was brilliant.”
Entrepreneur: Faraz Aghaei, co-founder The Clerkenwell Brothers, London Location: Dartmoor Cost: £250
When the Clerkenwell Brothers were asked to manage a rebrand for SpiceBox founder Grace Reagan, they wanted to take her back to where she was first inspired to start her business. “But we didn’t have the budget to go to San Francisco, so we went to Dartmoor instead,” Faraz Aghaei says. The experience meant they got to know Reagan much better than would’ve been possible in a London conference room. “It also allowed for two to three days of subconsciously letting our minds think about [her business] rather than being antsy about all of the other emails coming in or other ongoing work,” Aghaei adds.
But he and the other co-founders make a point of taking holidays independently of their business too – something that’s become easier as the team has grown. “Having a slower pace of life opens up new ways of thinking, which is really useful in our industry,” he says.
This article was originally published by WIRED UK
