How to Plan for a Week Long Vacation as an Entrepreneur

Taking a vacation as an entrepreneur might seem like a pipe dream but it’s important to take time to rest and recharge, especially when you own and run a small business.

First, make sure to set aside the dates for your vacation ahead of time so you can start planning. Add them to your calendar. 

One month prior to your vacation let your clients know that you will be taking a vacation. This can be done during a meeting or a simple email. Depending on your business you can decide which clients need to be alerted or not. I am a service-based business so I let all my clients know even though I don’t talk to all of them every day. 

I like to send a formal email one month prior and then remind them the next time we meet.

I like to have a plan for how I will be handling their services while I am out so I can lay it out for them and so they know their business will be taken care of.

Depending on the services you provide to your clients you can either work ahead or have a team help you while you are out.

I like to do both. I like to work ahead as much as possible and if there are any day-to-day tasks that need to be done I assign them to a teammate and make sure my client knows that they will be taken care of while I am out. 

If an introduction is needed to that teammate I will set up a Zoom call so we can go over the process and they can meet face to face.

It’s also good to batch work ahead. I like to do this with my own business. I batch social media, blog posts and email newsletters so even though I am on vacation my community is still hearing from me.

Make sure to put an “out of office” response on your email with who to contact if there is anything urgent. I usually put my assistant’s email and my cell phone number so then I am not checking my email because if it was an emergency they would call me.

Set up a team meeting (if you have a team) 2 weeks prior to your vacation make sure that everything that needs to be done before you head out is on track and that all the day to day tasks have been assigned to appropriate parties.

Then it’s time to sit back, relax and recharge knowing your business and clients are taken care of.

Warmly,

Meredith