The Association Blog

Got PTO? Here are five science-based reasons to use it now

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It’s no secret that the animal welfare profession has had a work-life balance problem. While we now understand the importance of modeling the behavior to those new to the sector (set your boundaries! Take your PTO!), it can be a hard habit to break. That’s particularly true during the summertime, as you may be short-staffed when team members take family vacations and long weekends.

It’s not just our industry. In 2018, a U.S. Travel Association survey found that more than 50% of Americans have unused time off, with a whopping 30% of it forfeited completely. Here are five benefits you’ll miss out on if you don’t take your time off, as reported by Rebecca Zucker in her article for Harvard Business Review, “How Taking a Vacation Improves Your Well-Being.”

1. Vacation allows you to reset detrimental sleep patterns and catch up on sleep debt, often brought on by workplace stress and anxiety. The American Psychological Association found that getting even 60 minutes additional sleep a night can improve concentration.

2. Decluttering an overwhelmed mind will allow you to welcome clarity and creativity instead. Case in point: Lin-Manuel Miranda came up with the idea for Hamilton while on vacation. So why can’t you come up with a way to tackle access to care poolside?

3. When you’re back at work, you’ll be even more focused. According to research conducted by Ernst & Young, for every 10 hours of vacation time taken by staff, their year-end performance improved by 8%.

4. Simple but true: Relaxing out of office can reduce stress hormones and thus boost your immune system.

5. The stressors and anxieties of work and busy routines can take us away from our true selves—and we may lose touch with what we really want for our lives, and what’s most important to us. Time off offers an opportunity to step back and get a new perspective.

What other benefits of taking vacation have you experienced?