8 Is the Magic Number

Greetings all!

When is your next vacation? Is it a short or a long one? And do you actually need a vacation?

William Taft, the 27th president of the US, pondered exactly that in 1910. He thought that we might need a 2- or 3-month vacation “to continue work the next year with that energy and effectiveness which it ought to have.” (“How long should a man’s vacation be?,” New York Times, 1910, July 31).

First things first – you DO need to take time off! Recent studies show that if you do not take your annual vacation, there is an increased mortality risk.

But was President Taft right? Do we really need 2 to 3 months to re-energize? How long does it actually take to get into a vacation mode?

Well, we now have the answer! According to a study published in the Journal of Happiness Studies (yes, it is a real publication!), it takes at least 8 days to forget about work-related stress.

What I found interesting is that the enjoyment does not continue to grow indefinitely the longer we are on vacation! In fact, longer vacations might be tapering off the enjoyment level, and Day 11 is when one starts longing for the routine and developing homesickness.

So it seems the perfect length of a vacation is 8-11 days! 

I am usually ready to come home after 10-12 days. However, I do feel that more research is needed! So in the name of science (and for personal well-being), we should take more vacations of various lengths!

Sources:

• https://www.rd.com/advice/travel/vacation-length/
• https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10902-012-9345-3

What did you think? Drop me a line!