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Take vacations? Where do you go? What do you do? Do you “turn everything off” or “leave your laptop at home”?

If you “need a vacation,” it may just be a symptom.

I am “on vacation” at this very moment. In Nassau, Bahamas. Sitting by the pool. Relaxing. It’s sunny and 82 degrees (with the wind chill factor, it’s 81 degrees), and I’m writing. Well actually I’m thinking and capturing my thoughts in writing. I love to write, and even though I do it every day, vacation gives me more freedom to generate new thoughts.

What do you do on vacation?

Read three books?

Eat food that’s not part of your diet?

Play golf?

Just play?

PARTY!

Lie by the pool and read?

Ski the Alps?

Get a tan?

Relax? Just veg out?

Drink a lot?

Sometimes people party so hard on vacation that when they get home they need another vacation.

One common thread among the people on vacation: Everyone seems to be happy. Unless you bring your kids. Then the happiness factor reduces some. Kids wanna have total fun; parents want to restrict fun.

Why do people look forward to a vacation, besides the things I named above? Because it gives them a respite from their day-to-day responsibility.

What people fail to realize is that when they relax and let go, ideas have a chance to “pop” into their heads. Same with you. And those ideas must be captured if you seek to take advantage of them.

Think-write-relax-think – somehow, relaxing brings the next thought. Like magic.

You go away to refresh and rejuvenate your mind and body, and there are a thousand places you can pick. Problem is you spend too much time selecting. JUST GO! And once you get there, don’t spend too much time drinking. When you’re drunk, you miss out on thoughts and ideas. And you spend half your relaxation time getting sober.

My vacation choices are based on:

Doing what my body tells me to do.

Doing what my mind tells me to do.

Going to nice places. I can afford them, so I go with fun in mind, not budget.

Going someplace new. There is an excitement in a first-time visit.

I know I will take my laptop and all connectivity devices with me, because I intend to work AND relax.

When I could not afford vacations, I didn’t go. Rather, I visualized all the other vacations I had gone on, and was, for the moment, fulfilled and grateful. I kept my momentum knob set on “do what you love and work hard to succeed,” knowing I could celebrate later.

Lately I have been choosing weekend beach locations in the winter. For me, the sun has “relax power.” For me, the water has “renewal” power. Health spas for years have claimed they possessed the “fountain of youth.” All they had was water.

People will challenge me to “just relax” and “leave work at home.”

UPDATE: Just because I’m writing, doesn’t mean I’m not relaxing. It relaxes me to empty my brain of thoughts or challenge my mind to think and then lie back to let the sun have at me like some elixir – the ultimate shot of vitamin D. I love what I do and choose to do it while I relax.

My purpose is to challenge you to take more time for yourself. But be prepared once you arrive. New ideas come to mind while you’re relaxing.

New thoughts bring new energy and renewed enthusiasm for career and family.

Capture your thoughts on vacation. Elaborate on them. Bank them. And let them pay for the next few vacations. Jeffrey Gitomer can be reached by phone at (704) 333-1112 or by e-mail at salesman@gitomer.com. © 2007 Jeffrey H. Gitomer