Wednesday 19th June

The Pulse

Disconnect

Written by
Paul Hassing

Businesses, Featured, Lifestyle

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24
Apr

Danger Will Robinson!

I’m back from my break.

Thank you for continuing to read and comment.

The last three weeks did me good.

I also learned hard-but-valuable lessons on how to make my next holiday (and maybe yours) a whole lot better.

Final things

Despite drawing a clear line in the sand a month before my break, I let three things slip into ‘my’ time:

Preparing a business activity statement.
Passing a project to another copywriter.
Writing this post ahead of time so I wouldn’t have to do it at 6 am on my first day back.

I should’ve made time to nail all these things before I left.

The first two hung over me until handled in weeks one and two of my break.

The third haunted me right through.

Next time I’ll start shutdown preparations much earlier.

Hard wired

My wife and I had chosen to be tourists in our own town.

While this led to fun adventures, it meant I passed my home office many times a day.

The temptation to check my ‘world’ proved irresistible. Often.

Fonnie begged me to turn off my PC and leave it off.

I countered that I needed it for my hobbies.

But each time I logged on play with photos or do other fun stuff, I couldn’t resist doing (quasi) work tasks which fatigued me as surely as real work.

It wasn’t until Day 14 of my break that I heeded Fonnie’s request.

And even this wasn’t by choice.

Sea change

We spent our third week by the sea.

I woke to waves at 3 am.

Unable to sleep, I decided to get up and do something ‘useful’.

But then I realised the Empire Über Komputer was far away and not remotely accessible.

For the first time in years, I really was offline.

This was unsettling.

Without the distraction of work, I was forced to lie still and think all my thoughts.

The happy and surprising result of this was that I eventually fell into a deep, healing sleep.

At this point, my holiday truly began.

Third time lucky

My final week off was bliss.

What a shame I wasn’t smart enough to enjoy all three of them!

But I’ll know for next time.

Is any of this familiar to you?

Paul Hassing | Founder & Senior Writer – The Feisty Empire

BAS, break, customers, holiday, home office, lessons, relationships, switch off

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What others are saying

Author

Jurek Leon

April 24, 2012 at 12:16 pm

Paul, I hate it when you make me feel guilty! I can relate completely to your struggles, the rationalisation and the failure to truly recharge the batteries. Now I know the missing piece in my puzzle…. take a third week off to really get it happening.

There is only one piece of advice missing from this cautionary tale (so I’m told) – practice makes perfect!

Reply
- Author
  
  Paul Hassing Founder & Senior Writer - The Feisty Empire
  
  April 24, 2012 at 12:47 pm
  
  What a beaut comment to come back to, Jurek! Despite the guilt, I reckon it’s always good to know one’s not alone in the dark. Many thanks for your resounding echo. I hear you! Best regards, P.
  
  Reply
Author

Winston Marsh

April 24, 2012 at 1:53 pm

You could have taken your i-pad Paul and then you’d never feel stranded!

I must admit I get twitchy when I’m away from my cyberworld for too long. My secret is to go far away where phone and internet condition is poor and then, after a couple of days, I’ve slowed down so I don’t worry.

Voila! You should have gone to the seaside in week 1, Paul!

Reply
- Author
  
  Paul Hassing Founder & Senior Writer - The Feisty Empire
  
  April 24, 2012 at 1:56 pm
  
  Funny you should say that, Winston: I plan to release some news on the iPad front that may stun our readers.
  
  You’re so right about doing the sea thing in Week 1. Next year, I’ll do that for sure. And spend TWO weeks there.
  
  Many thanks indeed for adding your view.
  
  Reply
  - Author
    
    Paul Hassing Founder & Senior Writer - The Feisty Empire
    
    April 26, 2012 at 10:52 am
    
    And here’s the iPad news! http://myob.com.au/blog/wifeys-top-ten-ipad-things/
Author

Leon Noone

April 24, 2012 at 2:24 pm

G’Day Paul,
Stop holding out on us. Which were the secret Melbourne places you discovered that you’d recommend to the rest of us—–apart from the Essendon Hall of Fame whjch I already know about.

C’mon now:where is Melbourne’s equivalent to Saint Chappelle in Paris?

Welcome back to you and Fonnie.

Best Wishes
Leon

Reply
Author

Leon Noone

April 24, 2012 at 2:24 pm

G’Day Paul,
Stop holding out on us. Which were the secret Melbourne places you discovered that you’d recommend to the rest of us—–apart from the Essendon Hall of Fame whjch I already know about.

C’mon now:where is Melbourne’s equivalent to Saint Chappelle in Paris?

Welcome back to you and Fonnie.

Best Wishes
Leon

Reply
- Author
  
  Paul Hassing Founder & Senior Writer - The Feisty Empire
  
  April 24, 2012 at 2:30 pm
  
  Merci for your bon welcome, Leon. And your beacoup ace comments during my absence.
  
  I took many photos of our adventures, with which I’ll illustrate some pertinent posts.
  
  Meanwhile, the closest I can get to Saint Chappelle is the highly spiritual fly-casting pool of reflection in Fairfield: http://www.squidoo.com/flyfishingpool
  
  Fin.
  
  Reply
  - Author
    
    Winston Marsh
    
    April 24, 2012 at 5:08 pm
    
    So you’ll get some of your images form your own camera work Paul. But where do you get the others that so brilliantly illustrate your articles.
    
    BTW its great to go to the fly fishing pool when they are in full swing… or should that be full cast?
  - Author
    
    Paul Hassing Founder & Senior Writer - The Feisty Empire
    
    April 24, 2012 at 8:47 pm
    
    You’re jolly kind, Winston. If I don’t have the right photo myself, I go for iStockphoto. As discussed here, http://myob.com.au/blog/cheap-shots/ this crowd is pretty good and reasonably cheap.
    
    The ultimate synergy would be to flog my photos to MYOB via iStockphoto (but The Vatican is still analysing the ethics of such a trade …)
    
    All jokes aside, there’s something about that fly fishing pool that keeps me coming back. Guess I’m … hooked!
  - Author
    
    Paul Hassing Founder & Senior Writer - The Feisty Empire
    
    April 25, 2012 at 10:06 am
    
    And now for something even grander:
    
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TWiTMhCQwOE&context=C4132a6bADvjVQa1PpcFMbLXZxCmdgNsIn5hx3nxEQUVLNdJ7dFEA=
    
    See also:
    
    http://philipgreenwood.com.au/2010/01/the-pinnacles-phillip-island-cape-woolamai/
Author

Adam Finlay

April 24, 2012 at 7:51 pm

Gotta switch off, Paul. Otherwise you’re on! I have a policy of not checking work email while on hols. Not once. Let it pile up. Glad you had a fine break, though …

Reply
- Author
  
  Paul Hassing Founder & Senior Writer - The Feisty Empire
  
  April 24, 2012 at 8:53 pm
  
  Good advice, Ad. It’s great to see a fellow scribe ahead of the curve. Many thanks for your well wishes.
  
  Reply
Author

Malcolm Owens

April 26, 2012 at 10:26 am

Hi Paul,

I’m glad your holiday worked out. I’m just back from a week overseas for work but the tide of emails and phone messages got to the point of being overwhelming and spent much of the time responding on my Blackberry. Sort of OK because I was still working but everyone knew I was away so why the constant need to email?

Anyway, when on holidays I now have a rule that I will look at emails between 6.00 and 7.00pm each evening but at no other time during the day. That has provided freedom to relax and enjoy the break. My wife used to get so frustrated with me taking calls while we were away or being ‘stuck’ on the email when the family were waiting to go to the beach. Very bad. I even had couriers arriving with documents to read and artwork to approve!

Then I got fed up with it and said no more. What changed? The business still ran, people took responsibility for themselves and the jobs were done. I then returned to work rested and in a great mood.

Damn it, you’ve inspired me – I’m booking a holiday this week. Waking up to the sounds of the waves is indeed one of life’s great pleasures.

Reply
- Author
  
  Paul Hassing Founder & Senior Writer - The Feisty Empire
  
  April 26, 2012 at 10:50 am
  
  Welcome back, M. I’m glad you’re home safe.
  
  Your comment is so frank and helpful; you have no idea how much I value such contributions.
  
  I hope you have as much fun as we did. Best regards, P.
  
  Reply
Author

Tash Hughes

April 27, 2012 at 2:44 pm

I’ve felt for a long time that for a real holiday I needed a week off to just tidy stuff (all those odds & ends that sit around longer than they should because they’re not as urgent as client work) and then have a week of nothing knowing I wasn’t coming back to a backlog as well as the influx.

Closest I’ve come lately is a quiet week leading up to Easter where I did little client work and spent time doing fun Melbourne things (didn’t spot you at the Zoo or Immigration Museum though Paul )

Good to have you back and rested, anyway! Have you booked your next break yet?

Reply
- Author
  
  Paul Hassing Founder & Senior Writer - The Feisty Empire
  
  April 27, 2012 at 2:56 pm
  
  I think you’re dead right, Tash. Our original plan was: 1 week crash on couch. 1 week play in Melbourne. 1 week relax at seaside.
  
  I allowed 1 month to tidy stuff beforehand, but I really needed 2. Amazing how many little tasks accumulate when you’re focussed on making hay.
  
  I’ll be posting some pics of our adventures around the place. (e.g. http://nowlookhere.wordpress.com/2012/04/27/fish-tale/ ). I hear the Immigration Museum is a ripper.
  
  We’ve been offered the same beach house again next year. I’m VERY tempted to lock it into for two weeks next April, but family matters may make this unviable. Either way, I’ve learnt that it is REALLY dumb to put holidays off for too long. The effects of work stress are extensive, lasting and deep.
  
  Thanks for your lovely comment, Tash. (Fonnie’s been getting so many, I was getting jealous!)
  
  Reply
Author

Paul Hassing Founder & Senior Writer - The Feisty Empire

May 7, 2012 at 8:04 am

Here’s a relevant vlog from our Yvonne:

http://www.safespacecoaching.com/1/post/2012/05/coaching-idea-of-the-week5.html

I like this as much for its message as its execution. When you’re too busy or tired to read, you can ALWAYS watch a video. As discussed earlier, I think this is the way of the future for savvy business owners with something to say:

http://myob.com.au/blog/meet-barry/

So check it out!

Reply
- Author
  
  Paul Hassing Founder & Senior Writer - The Feisty Empire
  
  May 7, 2012 at 8:48 am
  
  And speaking of videos, our Helen continues to impress the defluffed, nicely pressed, correctly hung pants off me. Here’s her latest:
  
  ‘Tip #6 Garment Care| Helen Robinett | Image Quest: youtu.be/Uw7C8HRHioM via @youtube’
  
  Reply
  - Author
    
    Paul Hassing Founder & Senior Writer - The Feisty Empire
    
    May 7, 2012 at 8:49 am
    
    Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uw7C8HRHioM

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