I love a good holiday - in fact, it’s one of my favourite things to do in life. However, at some point over the years juggling work and home life, holidays became too few and far between. I lost sight of the criticality of rest and the extreme value of experiencing different cultures and places. Not only is it incredibly good for our bodies, but it's immensely beneficial to our minds to rest, recharge and find inspiration for our next adventure.
Planning your rest is a critical element of health, within our focus area of preparedness. And as I always say, you can't argue with science. And science has proven the importance of regular breaks during the day, the week and especially annually, so you have that time to really reset.
There are two types of rest I want you to consider today: big breaks and mini breaks. I talk through the benefits of each one and give you tips on how to best plan for them.
We’ll also explore how to beat the back-to-work blues, where I share the fun ritual my family and I have to select our next adventure and give us something to look forward to.
Whether you're yearning for a tropical getaway or seeking inspiration for your next trip, I hope this episode is a helpful roadmap to planning your successful next adventure. May it also inspire you to seek the much-needed rest and recharge we all need for a joyful, more balanced life!
Connect with Me:
Website: www.balanceathand.com
Instagram: @balance_at_hand
Resources mentioned: Travel Planner Checklist
Hello and welcome.
Speaker:I've just got caught in a
Speaker:huge rainstorm while on the
Speaker:way to school pickup, and I
Speaker:thought now is the exact time
Speaker:to talk to you about planning
Speaker:your rests, especially while
Speaker:I'm thinking about my need
Speaker:for a tropical holiday.
Speaker:I love having holidays.
Speaker:It's one of my favorite
Speaker:things to do, but being
Speaker:so busy, they used to
Speaker:be too far and too few.
Speaker:Between.
Speaker:I didn't appreciate the
Speaker:criticality of rest for
Speaker:all of us and the extreme
Speaker:value of the experience of
Speaker:different cultures and places.
Speaker:Not only is it incredibly
Speaker:good for our bodies, but
Speaker:it's incredibly beneficial to
Speaker:our minds to rest, recharge,
Speaker:and have some adventure
Speaker:and find your inspiration.
Speaker:Planning your rest is
Speaker:a critical element of
Speaker:health, within our focus
Speaker:area of preparedness.
Speaker:And as I always say, you
Speaker:can't argue with science,
Speaker:and science has proven the
Speaker:importance of regular breaks
Speaker:during the day, during
Speaker:the week, and especially
Speaker:annually, so you have
Speaker:that time to really reset.
Speaker:There are two types of rests
Speaker:I want you to consider today.
Speaker:One is the big breaks,
Speaker:which are at least a week
Speaker:in length, and the other
Speaker:is small mini breaks.
Speaker:First up, the big breaks.
Speaker:These are the super extended
Speaker:fun downtime holidays where
Speaker:you either have an adventure
Speaker:or you go and lay by a pool
Speaker:and do absolutely nothing.
Speaker:There are so many
Speaker:things you can do.
Speaker:I really, really like for
Speaker:people to plan these in
Speaker:advance because you know,
Speaker:everything's easier when
Speaker:you know a holiday is coming
Speaker:up, especially at work.
Speaker:With big breaks, you
Speaker:really need to think
Speaker:through what your plan is.
Speaker:You can set up a savings plan.
Speaker:So you're ready in advance of
Speaker:the trip and you're booking
Speaker:things as well as doing all
Speaker:the research you need so
Speaker:that you have the best trip
Speaker:with all the experiences that
Speaker:you want to have, including
Speaker:where you want to stay,
Speaker:what you want to feel and
Speaker:achieve out of the trip.
Speaker:Work out what you
Speaker:really want from a rest.
Speaker:For example, if you want to
Speaker:break from the everyday, then
Speaker:getting a rental where you
Speaker:still have to cook and clean
Speaker:may not be the best outcome,
Speaker:and you'll probably come back
Speaker:as frazzled as when you left.
Speaker:To then balance the time
Speaker:between your big breaks, I
Speaker:have found absolute magic
Speaker:in monthly mini breaks.
Speaker:Not only does this give me
Speaker:something fun and pretty
Speaker:immediate to think about,
Speaker:But a mini break rejuvenates
Speaker:with regular adventure.
Speaker:At least once a month,
Speaker:I plan a weekend or day
Speaker:doing something special.
Speaker:This may be an overnight
Speaker:camping adventure, a day
Speaker:hike, a picnic with friends,
Speaker:or a visit around the city.
Speaker:I have really embraced
Speaker:this as a chance to explore
Speaker:my own backyard, and it
Speaker:is truly inspirational
Speaker:to see and experience
Speaker:different things each month.
Speaker:Doing this?
Speaker:And by the end of the
Speaker:year, I have had at
Speaker:least 12 mini adventures.
Speaker:For my family to set
Speaker:up our plans, we have
Speaker:a super fun way to beat
Speaker:the back to work blues.
Speaker:At the end of a trip,
Speaker:we select our next trip.
Speaker:So there is something
Speaker:immediately to
Speaker:look forward to.
Speaker:In our house, we have two
Speaker:jars, one for big drips
Speaker:and one for mini breaks.
Speaker:Annually, we sit and we
Speaker:fill the jars with pieces
Speaker:of paper that each have
Speaker:a destination and an
Speaker:experience written on each.
Speaker:For example, on this piece
Speaker:of paper I have in front
Speaker:of me, the destination says
Speaker:Africa and the experience is
Speaker:to see elephants in the wild.
Speaker:And I really hope we
Speaker:pick that one out next.
Speaker:Anyway, fold your paper
Speaker:up and pop it in the jar.
Speaker:And then at your first dinner,
Speaker:after you come back from
Speaker:your big break and you've
Speaker:got a bit of back to work
Speaker:blues, you can make it a
Speaker:really, really fun ritual
Speaker:to select your next break.
Speaker:And we do exactly the
Speaker:same with our mini
Speaker:break jar as well.
Speaker:To help you start your
Speaker:own jars, I've created
Speaker:a free template you
Speaker:can print and make into
Speaker:a fun event to select
Speaker:mini break and big break
Speaker:destinations and experiences.
Speaker:You can grab a copy of
Speaker:this from balance at hand.
Speaker:com to inspire you in
Speaker:your destination ideas.
Speaker:Recently.
Speaker:I've had the absolute pleasure
Speaker:of talking to Christina
Speaker:Carlson, founder of your
Speaker:dream life starts here.
Speaker:And I've asked her a couple
Speaker:of questions about travel.
Speaker:Let's have a listen
Speaker:What is the favorite
Speaker:place you've been to?
Speaker:Oh, there
Speaker:are so many amazing
Speaker:places around the world.
Speaker:One of my highest
Speaker:values is travel.
Speaker:And if I can combine work
Speaker:and travel, I am in heaven.
Speaker:But I have to say Maldives
Speaker:is one of my favorite places
Speaker:to go to because There
Speaker:is not a lot to do more
Speaker:than reading, doing yoga.
Speaker:And I love warmth and
Speaker:walking and just spending
Speaker:time with my family.
Speaker:And we used to go there often
Speaker:on the way back to Sweden.
Speaker:And it was such an amazing
Speaker:holiday as a family because
Speaker:my kids love surfing.
Speaker:They love swimming.
Speaker:My partner serves and there's
Speaker:yoga, there's good food,
Speaker:but there's not a lot to do.
Speaker:So I always had a suitcase
Speaker:full of books and, I just
Speaker:spent so much time and reading
Speaker:and on getting up early and
Speaker:filled probably three journals
Speaker:each time I went there.
Speaker:It's such a beautiful place.
Speaker:And, um, saying that I also
Speaker:love bustling, big, amazing
Speaker:cities and different cultures,
Speaker:but in terms of holiday, and
Speaker:I think specifically because
Speaker:I work so much and I've
Speaker:worked so much over the years.
Speaker:So I think having a holiday
Speaker:Maldives doesn't give me
Speaker:that stimulation that often
Speaker:a place like New York or
Speaker:Paris or Dubai would give
Speaker:because they would give me
Speaker:so much business input versus
Speaker:Maldives will actually get me.
Speaker:Uh, into much calmer state
Speaker:because there wasn't so
Speaker:much business inspiration.
Speaker:Oh, it
Speaker:sounds lovely.
Speaker:And where would
Speaker:you like to go?
Speaker:Where is somewhere that you
Speaker:haven't necessarily been yet?
Speaker:I haven't been to Antarctica,
Speaker:so I want to go there.
Speaker:I haven't been
Speaker:to South America.
Speaker:you know, I want
Speaker:to go to Argentina.
Speaker:I want to go to Brazil.
Speaker:So lots of places, but also
Speaker:I spent a day in my own city
Speaker:on Wednesday and I went to
Speaker:the gallery and because I
Speaker:used to travel so much and
Speaker:I don't travel as much.
Speaker:And I think most of us don't
Speaker:travel as much of a COVID.
Speaker:Because it's so much easier
Speaker:to do a lot of things online
Speaker:in terms of travel for work.
Speaker:And, uh, I walked into
Speaker:town, which took me
Speaker:about an hour and a half.
Speaker:I had a coffee on the
Speaker:way I went to gallery.
Speaker:And often when we go
Speaker:traveling, we go to those
Speaker:places like the galleries
Speaker:or the museums or the
Speaker:restaurants in the new city.
Speaker:And sometimes we forget to
Speaker:do that in our own city or
Speaker:perhaps don't forget, but
Speaker:we don't take the time.
Speaker:So sometimes I think just
Speaker:to see, you know, smaller
Speaker:cities or smaller towns
Speaker:in our own country is
Speaker:incredibly rewarding as well.
Speaker:Oh, so inspirational.
Speaker:I could listen to
Speaker:Christina all day.
Speaker:Planning big trips can be
Speaker:overwhelming if you're not
Speaker:an experienced traveler.
Speaker:So if you are after some
Speaker:support to plan through
Speaker:each step of your trip,
Speaker:head to balanceathand.
Speaker:com where I have created
Speaker:travel checklists for
Speaker:big travel planning.
Speaker:And one of them has a special
Speaker:focus on tropical trips.
Speaker:So if you need to beat the
Speaker:return to work blues or
Speaker:want to be more organized
Speaker:with planning your
Speaker:rests, I really recommend
Speaker:setting up your own jars.
Speaker:Think through the timing
Speaker:of your next break.
Speaker:What do you need on your
Speaker:next break and make sure
Speaker:that you're prepared because
Speaker:that makes your rest even
Speaker:more rewarding because if
Speaker:you're prepared, you're
Speaker:excited, you're ready, and
Speaker:you're moving towards a
Speaker:wonderful, balanced life.
Speaker:I can't wait to hear
Speaker:about your adventures
Speaker:until next time.
Speaker:Live your best balanced life.