The U.S. Department of Labor reports only one in five women take a vacation once every six years. I’m betting that if you are reading this blog, you are in that 20% group. This doesn’t mean you took a few days off to get things done at home, attend a friend’s wedding, or entertain the kids. This means taking a bona fide, self-centered, body and mind relaxing week off.

In addition to promoting good mental health, women who take vacations report better sleep, better relationships, and were less likely to be tense or depressed.

If you want to do your best work and make a difference, you need to take a vacation. When is your next one planned?

Another study conducted by the Sociology Department at Ohio State University found that women feel more rushed than men. While men report feeling relaxed when they had free time, women still feel rushed. It takes more time for women to decompress and quiet their minds.

Your brain needs time to process information so you have access to it when you need to be creative or when you need to respond quickly to a crisis. What will it take for you to believe that doing nothing important is not being lazy?

At least twice a year, I go somewhere where I can’t get email or phone messages. It is excruciating for a moment, and then I relax into the blissful beauty of this planet. Yes, it is overwhelming for a day or two when I return. But the world didn’t collapse.

What do you do? Please share your ideas. And have some fun this weekend!