Imagine sitting on the beach with your laptop, sipping a tropical cocktail while you work.
Okay, this sort of image has become pretty cliche for remote workers at this point, hasn’t it?
While the tech world certainly glamorizes the lives of digital nomads and the concept of “working from anywhere,” the fact remains that you can get down to business just about anywhere these days.
And yes, that does include the beach and other exotic locations.
Why Techies are Taking Remote Vacations
In fact, tons of remote workers are taking frequent “vacations” not for the sake of showing off, but rather due to a desire for more productivity. If you’re fortunate enough to have the same sort of opportunities, consider some benefits of working vacations such as…
- The opportunity to break out of your traditional environment to spark creativity
- The ability to spend quality time with your family while also earning some much-needed income
- The unique change to double-dip work with pleasure, a huge upside of not having to stay confined to a traditional office setting
Of course, this begs a big question: who do you need to make your trip a success? Is going on a sort of “working vacation” possible without being caught up by distractions?
Absolutely. It all boils down to a combination of smart planning and having the right tech on deck. With the following six tips in your back pocket, you can start brainstorming where you want to go to get away from it all while getting to work at the same time.
Bring Along the Comforts of Home
Ideally, you should have a sort of “home base” that’s conducive work regardless of where you’re staying. That’s exactly why there’s a shift towards remote workers doing business via RV. As such, you can find RV rentals in Virginia Beach or any other tourist hotspot that are fully equipped with WiFi and all of the other comforts of home.
Stay Connected Constantly
There’s nothing worse than poor connectivity, especially when you’re away from home. While Internet access is a no-brainer for remote workers, it can be a bit tricky when you’re on-the-go.
Taking a look at the best mobile hotspots, consider how you can invest in such tech so you don’t have to worry about lost time while you’re away from home. Likewise, you may have the option to tether via your smartphone depending on your phone carrier and data plan. As a precaution, make sure you’ve tested all these options beforehand to give yourself peace of mind.
Mind Your Mobile Screens
If you really want to work from the beach, you’re going to have to keep your screen-time in mind.
This rings true for your laptop and mobile devices alike. One essential but often overlooked piece of doing work on the beach are anti-glare screen protectors. Although an obvious tip, make sure to stay shaded where possible to also prevent potential overheating of your devices.
Around-the-Clock Communication
As is the case of any remote work vacation, you need to take steps to ensure that you’re in constant communication with your clients, customers and coworkers. Whether it’s collaboration solutions such as Trello and Google Docs or chat platforms like Skype, such tools result in less lengthy back-and-forth while you’re trying to relax.
Stick to a Schedule
There’s nothing worse than going on vacation and feeling like you can’t relax. Remember: a working vacation should still be a vacation.
By sticking to a schedule in terms of when you’re going to work, you can block out time to work and play. The key is to commit to being productive during your work hours, which requires your commitment as well as the respect of anyone who might be traveling with you. Seriously: your vacation will go way smoother when you set your own boundaries.
Know When to Unplug
On a related note, it’s difficult to work through plateaus or work-related headaches when you’re on vacation. Sometimes you might flat out need to walk away for a moment for the sake of your sanity. Ideally, you can plan your vacations around times where you’re working on more relaxed projects or are simply “on-call” versus being a workaholic.
Likewise, bear in mind that you don’t have to be glued to your laptop to be productive. A quick phone call can be the remedy to an hour-long back and forth Slack conversation, for example. Similarly, taking notes on a pen and pad can be a great brain break from staring at a screen.
Either way, it’s all about working on your terms. There is no “right” way to take a remote work vacation, after all.
Don’t assume that an awesome working vacation in somehow beyond your reach. By investing in the proper tech and making plans accordingly, you can literally make your vacation work for you.
