Spring is right around the corner and most of us have already booked some much needed time away from the hustle and bustle. As we take on the daunting task of planning our fun in the sun, here are 5 helpful tips you can use to ensure that your attention to detail post vacation planning, like your adorable York terrier, stays at home so that you can be fully present in the moment.
Capture The Experience More Than The Actual Photo Of It: We document everything today. There is no getting around it. There are so many moments while on vacation that I simply forgot about until I go through old photos on my phone or laptop many months later. I was too busy focusing on the perfect shot, rather than the perfect moment. One way to be fully present is to choose a day where you will be focused solely on obtaining photos for Instagram. If you have to get up early before your family or friends in order to so, perfect! You can also swap photos with friends so that everyone isn’t clamoring to take out their phones to take a picture of the same dolphin jumping out of the water. Another option is taking turns being the photographer for the day, it can free up others so that everyone can get the true vacation experience they actually paid for.
Lock It Up And Put It Down: This one may prove to be difficult for some. I’m talking about putting away your cell phone to make real connections with people. If you have a safe in your hotel room, place your device in it during meal times. We all want to stay connected to the world we left behind but we can do without a 24-hour news cycle, or the food updates of followers back home for at least an hour or so. You’ve known your friends for years but take this time to fully see them without the pressures or masks we often wear back in the matrix.
Let Go Of Rigid Schedules: My biggest pet peeve is to be around people who want to schedule a day of activities in the Caribbean like an agenda on a 9am Monday conference call. The whole purpose of being on vacation is to not be the work version of you. Allow yourself to breathe and soak in the experience without feeling the pressure to fill each hour with some task. Be open to the magic that can occur when you are free to be excited NOT knowing what can happen.
Embellish Your Self –Care: We can fall into the trap of not keeping up with our workouts and over eating while we are experiencing moments of leisure. We tell ourselves we’ve earned it. Be careful however, that you maintain what makes you feel great and fully functional at home. Don’t be afraid to spice up workouts with excursions that incorporate physical activity on a fun and larger scale. Get that massage you’ve been meaning to schedule back home, look silly in a full body seaweed wrap. There is nothing wrong with tapping into the person you never give yourself permission to be.
Don’t Forget To Be Human: This sounds ridiculous right? It isn’t though. In a world where people sleep with their iPhones and tablets, text instead of call, and check up on family and friends via their Facebook timelines, we forget that that our digital connection is just that, digital. While your tossing back drinks at the swim up bar, engage in conversation with someone you don’t know. We are all on vacation so our guards (hopefully) are down. Ask where they are from, when did they arrive, and when they are leaving. People always like to represent their city and boast about how it’s only been day one of a much-needed getaway. Try to avoid asking, what do you do? That will come up organically, but just like your ethnicity, sexual orientation, or zip code, it doesn’t define all of who you are. You’d be surprised at the commonalities you share with complete strangers when you’re being, well…. human.
