My Secrets to Success: Tips on Entrepreneurship, Relationships, Parenthood & Living Adventurously. Part 2

I have so many tips that I am excited to share with you in My Secrets to Success Series. You can find the first edition here. The toughest decision is what to share next! I just returned from a three-day long weekend getaway with my husband and my creative juices are overflowing. Which leads me this very important newsflash:

Tip # 2:  If  You Want To Be Successful In Business (and relationships and parenthood for that matter) TAKE LOTS OF VACATIONS!

Yes, taking time away from work and daily responsibilities is one of the best things you can do for your business, your health, your sanity, and your creativity. Coming from a self-proclaimed life-a-holic that loves her work, her marriage, her family and her fun (not necessarily in that order), I have found that the more time I take away from the office, the more inventive, inspired and jazzed about my work I become. It is one of my secrets to success.

I know the feeling. Work is piling up on my desk, there are phone calls to return, e-mails to respond to, Facebook posts to make. I love it all and feel very blessed to live my calling and work with the most fabulous clients on the planet. However, there comes a time every few months (or even weeks) where my brain hits overload status. And I mean overload. Thoughts, queries, and requests are flying in the direction of my brain looking for an intelligible and high-alert, problem-solving response. Then, suddenly I realize I have absolutely no brain cells left to fire back to the inquirer. I used to wait until I hit this proverbial wall to realize I was beyond my deadline for a vacation. Not anymore.

Now I plan ahead and I use my time away as a life and business booster.  Why?

Because I have found that my most brilliant business ideas have been born while I was on vacation.

Here are some examples:

• My light bulb moment for my life planning and goal setting software, Blastation, came to me while vacationing in Laguna Beach, CA.

• Solutions to my most complicated homeopathic cases often come to me thousands of feet up in the air as I am flying to some far away (usually tropical) destination.

• My inspiration to the conclusion to my book, Blast Off!, came to me while walking on the beach with my husband.

• I just had another brilliant business idea (can’t tell you yet!) come to me while getting a massage at a spa in Charlotte, NC.

What is the reasoning for these vacation ‘aha moments? When you are at work, you are busy doing, responding, tasking, detailing, analyzing and communicating. If you are very focused on your activities, all of your senses are at play and being utilized to the max. When you are away from your daily business at hand, your body and mind will begin to relax and unwind. And once you have had a chance to decompress, your thoughts are now free to let go, explore and create.

Have any of you had a brilliant idea or solved one of your most pressing conflicts while taking a shower? This is because you are feeling relaxed from the hot water, and in many cases, you are experiencing a rare several minutes of undisturbed quiet time. This downtime can also be one of your secrets to success.

They say necessity is the mother of invention and I say, “creativity is the goddess of reinvention.” Doing things the same way every day, year after year is not going to yield you much positive change. If you are spinning your wheels, and in dire need of a recharge or inspiration burst in your life or business, you have my blessing to take a vacation, even if it is just for a few days.

Pushing yourself to birth new ideas is about as fruitful as trying hard to have a baby. It is through letting go and allowing that the fertility and ingenuity have room to be born.

So go to that cooking seminar you have been dreaming of, dance in the moonlight or head to where the flowers are blooming. Follow your passion and go have some fun! You deserve it. It may just be the most prosperous thing you do for yourself all year long. Yes, it just may become one of your top secrets to success.

I would love to hear your thoughts on my posts. Please feel free to comment. ~ Allison

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