It’s the season for summer vacations, amirite?
It may seem silly to have tips for taking time off (because it is your time to take after all). At the same time, in my experience, approaching vacation with some strategy and intentionality can help make it as stress-free as possible, especially when you return.
In case it’s helpful, here are some considerations.
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Choose A Good Time
Depending on your company, the size of your legal department, and your role, there may never be a perfect time — or even a great time — so don’t wait around. You absolutely need to take vacation for your mental health and physical well-being. At the same time, you may want to consider avoiding the busiest seasons (whatever that may mean for your company or industry). You may also want to consider when others on your team are taking time off so there is adequate coverage. It probably wouldn’t be a good look if everyone in the legal department was simultaneously MIA.
Block It Off On Calendars
While this may sound obvious, note the plural of the word “calendars.” Yes, absolutely block it off on your own calendar, but you may also want to consider whether you add it to your manager’s, colleagues’, or clients’ calendars (ensuring that it appears “free” and doesn’t actually block their time). It’s all about communication and ensuring that everyone has plenty of advance notice of when you will be gone in case they need something critical done before you leave.
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Get Coverage
This may vary depending on the size of your legal department, but if you can, line up coverage well ahead of time. On my legal team, we cover 100% for each other, but if you have a smaller legal department, you may not have the same luxury. One idea is that you may want to leverage outside counsel whom you trust and divert your clients to that outside counsel for the week or two that you are gone.
Give Clients A Heads-Up
If your company culture wouldn’t support adding your vacation to your clients’ calendars to give them a heads-up, be sure to calendar reminders for yourself at one to two weeks before the start of your vacation so that you can email your clients or give them a courtesy call. I also like to use this time to let them know who will be their contact while I am out.
Away Message
This is probably just me, but I am a fan of having personalized away messages for those within my organization. I like to include why I’m gone, when I’ll be back, who they can reach out to for help while I am out and my work cell number in case of an emergency (which I also define). For example, my message might say something like, “Hi! Thanks for your email but I am currently out of the office celebrating my daughter’s sixth birthday at the beach. I will be back on X day and will address emails as I have received them. If you need help that cannot wait until I get back, please reach out to Y. And if this is an urgent matter that needs immediate attention, and you can’t find any assistance, please call me at XXX-XXXX. Otherwise, I hope you also find some time for rest and relaxation soon.” With a message like this, you continue to support your clients by ensuring that they have a resource while setting the expectation that they shouldn’t reach out to you unless absolutely necessary.
Meyling “Mey” Ly Ortiz is in-house at Toyota Motor North America. Her passions include mentoring, championing belonging, and a personal blog: TheMeybe.com. At home, you can find her doing her best to be a “fun” mom to a toddler and preschooler and chasing her best self on her Peloton. You can follow her on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/meybe/). And you knew this was coming: her opinions are hers alone.