This has been the post that has taken the longest for me to start writing. Not becuase I didn’t want to write it, but because there is just so much I feel about the topic, and not a lot that can be said succinctly.

I actually wrote four different drafts of this post, talking about my bad habits around vacation and sick time, where they came from, and how I need to fight them, but then I realized at the end of the day, what I needed was a list of things to remember, so here they are:

  1. You are human
  2. You are allowed to be sick.
  3. You are allowed to take the time needed to get better.
  4. You have vacation time.
  5. Know how much vacation time you have.
  6. Plan to take your vacation time.
  7. Actually take your vacation time; you have earned it, and you deserve a break.
  8. If you feel like you “can’t” take a sick day, think about why.
    • Is it because you are afraid your team will suffer?
    • Write down why you think your team will suffer
    • Take the sick days.
    • When you return make it a prioroty to fix the things you wrote down.
  9. Ditto for vacation.

The next time I get sick or am thinking about taking a vacation, I’m going to re-read this post, and I hope you will too.