The great escape

There are people amongst us who literally fear the idea of taking a real vacation. They would rather keep working on and on and on.  Your atypical workaholic finds a certain delight in working himself like a dog, over several months and sometimes even years. Needless to say there is a flip side of this coin. Maybe you worry you'll fall off the wagon and out of line from all your responsibilities. Maybe you just feel better keeping busy. We're all acquainted the hackneyed proverb, 'All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.' But this is actually what happens to those amongst us who don't take time off to rest and take a much needed breather.
Now, yes we do take some time off for a couple of days. But that can hardly be called a vacation. The idea of a vacation is to take off from everything, abandoning almost every thought of work and pressure, and to rest your soul for at least a week (or more). So, don't wait to have “enough” money or time. It will benefit you if you really haven't taken a vacation for quite some time now.
Let's take a look at the risks of burnouts. When someone is overly disillusioned with a job or career or anything that they are doing passionately, they are prone to experience burnouts. Too much of something is not always good. This is what happens when we put excess stress on ourselves. According to the Framingham Heart Study conducted in 1948, both men and women who took vacations twice a year were eight times less prone to a cardiovascular disease than those who took irregular vacations. Men who did not go for a vacation once a year, had a 21% risk of death from all causes and 32% greater risk of dying from a heart attack.
Have you noticed that you do not have the same patience to relax and read a novel, reclining on your bedpost, as you used to in high school? Have you felt you don't care about your friends or family as much as you thought you would once you grew up? In the present day, we are all getting dragged down in the race for efficiency sponsored by this so called shiny corporate new world, which compensates us on the basis of our productivity. It's ultimately sucking the humanity out of us, slowly but surely, under the guise of working up the career ladder. But what's the use in blaming the rest of the world? Hold yourself accountable.  It is you who passes your free time absorbed in your smartphone instead of taking some time out for yourself and your friends. And no, the occasional junk food party doesn't suffice.
Ovick Alam, co-founder and CEO of Webable says, “I work in digital media marketing - It's round the clock (no weekends), intriguing and meticulous work. At the same time, it's exhausting and extremely stressful to dig data, align creative strategies with them, design at scale and optimize a campaign. This burns me out every 3-4 months. Ideas stop coming, energy and enthusiasm drops and you feel unproductive!” When asked what he does to get back in form he replied, “I go for a vacation, however small or long, which brings me bliss! It increases my productivity, brings in new perspectives and rekindles my spirit.”
The heart and the brain are the two organs of your body which work continuously from the day you were born till the day you die. It is true they can work restlessly, but that does not mean they should. A vacation is a great way to be kind to your body and take the daily pressure off from your heart and your brain. Our mind and body both need rest to stay fit and vigorous.  Vacation will give your soul the space it needs to rejuvenate and liberate itself. Embark on a journey someplace beautiful, away from home, away from work and all the dozen electronic devices you think your life relies on. Recharge your battery – the time off will refresh your mind and revitalize your body for another high-pressure round of work, family and responsibility.
Jurshad Rawmy is a Bangladeshi Student Studying BBA in APU, Japan. In regards of tiring work he says, "Once my scholarship was suspended and I had to pay 6.5 lakhs on my own in four months. I didn't wanted to break it to my parents, so I took up three part-time jobs instead and pushed myself really hard those four months. I managed to pull it off but the result was that I had completely maxed out. I usually work throughout the summer holidays but last year, I decided to head back home for a vacation. I had to struggle with the financing, but it was absolutely brilliant and it ended up refreshing me for an entire year of challenges ahead."
We fear that if we take a break long enough from our work or business, it will slow us down and we will waste more time to get back on track. While that might be true in some cases, doing the same task over and over again, will bore your brain, and take a toll on your efficiency. We need to give our mind the scope to think out of the box and open itself to the world around. We do not feel confident to get away from our routine work for long, but it also gives you something that you cannot get from short breaks or continuous work - a fresh perspective to plan for the future. In the end, it's your life; don't use it all up without a little fun. So, plan your getaway today, and break out of this vicious cycle.