Every scientist wants to squeeze a holiday or two into their calendar. However, finding the time in between all of your other commitments can be hard. Adeline, much like the rest of us, is desperate to get away from campus for a while and find somewhere to relax for a few days, so here I am to help you solve the age old question:
How do you plan a holiday when your schedule is always so full?
Dear Adeline,
I’m so sorry to hear that your schedule is making it difficult to take a holiday because, like every scientist, you’re definitely in need of one and it’s probably long overdue.
However, I can offer a few tips on how to hopefully find the time in amongst all the meetings, lab work and social events.
Step number one – prioritise. What will happen if you cancel the meeting you have in another, otherwise empty week, to take a few days R&R? Would the world implode? Would it derail your entire schedule? Would it devastate the future of science? The chances are, probably not. And, in the long run, it is definitely better that you get the chance to recharge than persevering to the point of burnout.
There are obviously some exceptions and meetings you can’t cancel. Maybe there are funding deadlines you need to meet, or a lab slot you’ve waited months for, or maybe the meeting is with a senior academic who wouldn’t take kindly to a cancelled meeting and you need to stay on their good side to get a spot on their upcoming fieldtrip. But by starting to consider how your meetings prioritise compared to your own well being, you’ll start to find the wiggle room in your calendar to organise other things. .
Step number two – Having realised that your sanity is more important than yet another meeting that definitely could have just been an email, do the obvious thing and get that holiday booked!
Step number three – Whilst on your way back from holiday, make sure to plan when you next want to take time off and block it out in your calendar so that you don’t struggle to find the time for the next trip away.
Yours truly,
The Sassy Scientist
PS: The best life advice I ever got was to always make sure you have a holiday in the pipeline, get planning!
