The other weekend I was in New York City and I realized a very helpful health tip that I haven’t come across before. From my experience many people will benefit from having 2-4 weekend retreats a year. For the business people, you can call it your quarter end retreat. They don’t have to be anything crazy, but there is a great benefit to doing something to break up the typical routine of life. Plus, you never know what stories you’ll create. For instance, the one weekend trip I did there was a sign at the campground that said “The flies are biting,” which we made fun of it until we realized they were in fact biting and there were swarms of these tiny air born sharks… that might be a bit of an exaggeration. Or there was the retreat I ran for 20 young people where we got kicked out of the campground after the first night at 7am because we were up past 9pm… that wasn’t ideal, and didn’t have me leaving a good Google review… although the owners were Mennonite so I don’t think they cared. For this recent weekend getaway, Alyshia and I went with a small group of friends, and it was a fantastic time. Was it NYC itself that was fantastic? Nope, it was breaking up the routine and being with friends. NYC is a fascinating place, but it’d be easy to hate it without the right companionship. That being said, one of the best things I did on this trip was spend time by myself. No, I didn’t annoy people to the point they left me… this time. It just worked out that one afternoon we all did our own thing, and I ended up in St Patrick’s Cathedral where I sat (a wonderful break from the constant walking) and spent a chunk of time journaling to clear my head (Bonus tip: journaling is a wonderful exercise because writing things down helps organize our thoughts and let them go, which is especially helpful when we can’t sleep). Sometimes we just need to give ourselves a time out. For kids it’s a punishment, but as an adult, a time out can be an incredible escape.
Need convincing to do a retreat? Here are seven reasons you should have weekend getaways whether with just your partner, with family, and/or with friends:
- They break up the monotony of our regular schedules.
- We get valuable memories and things to talk about later.
- They give us a break without it being too much of an interruption or expense. A weekend is short enough that it can allow us to get right back into routine whereas a week trip can make us hate returning to normal life.
- They can be great ways to reconnect with friends, family, and partners.
- They can be a great way to flush out our brains and break our normal thinking cycles.
- They can make life more enjoyable.
- They give us something to look forward to without the planning of a full vacation.
If you’re thinking a weekend retreat is too expensive, here are some tips for saving money:
- Ask a travel agent to help plan it: This is a huge time saver and stress reducer.
- Be willing to share a hotel with people: My agent found a room that comfortably fit 7 people.
- Be willing to be uncomfortable for a bit: We had 5 grown ups drive 10 hours in a Corolla… not ideal, but a huge cost savings.
- Be willing to each take a role in planning the trip: One friend and I did more of the preliminary planning and then other friends were amazing at navigating the city.
- Find a hotel with a complimentary breakfast
- Know where to sacrifice: We stayed in New Jersey and took a $3 bus into the city everyday; again it saved us a ton of money.
- Find ways to save money on food: My wife and I regularly split a bigger meal at restaurants. We saved money and avoided feeling sick after from eating too much.
- Don’t buy junk: It’s easy to want to spend on vacation, but only buy useful things that are a good price, unique, and/or act as reminders of the experience.
This week may you start to think about treating yourself to an affordable weekend getaway.
Rev Chad David, www.ChadDavid.ca, Learning to love dumb people