Comments on: Mad Dashes and Lists

By: Mridu Khullar

Mridu Khullar — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 06:06:26 +0000

I love Devon's idea of saying I'm booked. I typically have very friendly relationships with my editors, so I'm happy to tell them I'm on vacation (and so far no one's ever abused that), but for newer clients, maybe that's the way to go.

Thanks for the tips, Lori and Devon!

By: Lori

Lori — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 15:47:11 +0000

Georganna, if this house weren't like a free hotel (the rooms are always full!), I'd be the same. My clients get told. If the house is to stand empty, I NEVER say until I'm back for the same reason!

Kathy, I was fine until this morning. I had a project from HELL (same client you worked with recently). It took forever. Those are rare, but they usually happen right around vacation time, don't they? FYI, I just fended off a "Can you get this to us next week?" request. They did know I was leaving, so it came as a surprise they wanted it when I wasn't going to be here.

Ashley, the disconnect is the best thing imaginable. You don't think so until you're completely without connection. Your brain just stops cranking like a hamster wheel. :)

By: Ashley

Ashley — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 03:36:01 +0000

Go, girl. Get as far away as you can, even just for a little bit 🙂 And good for you for disconnecting entirely. It's so rare we can actually do that, and it's so important to fully recharge. I just got back from a short vacation and I was feeling mighty refreshed by the end! Have a great time!

By: Georganna Hancock M.S.

Georganna Hancock M.S. — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 01:40:58 +0000

I don't vacate any more, but if I did, I would not announce it to the world. I can just see the burglars lining up for the chance to break in!

If I could go away, I'm sure I would experience the same as you--a deluge of business.

Have a great time!

A Writer's Edge now coming to you via Posterous

By: Irreverent Freelancer

Irreverent Freelancer — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 20:20:03 +0000

After all the emotional upheavals you've been through, you deserve to sneak off for a vacation.

I'm usually a planner too--someone who puts everything that must be done on a day planner and enjoys ticking items off the list. This past vacation, I let all of the clients I'd worked with in the past two months know two weeks in advance. It turned out to not be enough. When they learned I'd be off for almost two weeks, almost every single one of them suddenly had something that couldn't wait until I came back.

I've always said that taking some kind of break is the quickest and surest way to bring in business. However, when you're really serious about that break, it can be a real drag. I worked my butt off the ten days leading up to my vacation, which led to some pretty stressful last-minute scrambling. You definitely don't need that. Sneak away, and don't look back. ;o)

By: Lori

Lori — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 17:15:01 +0000

Wow! That's high alert, Paula! Ours is lower – haven't heard the exact rating yet, but last night held much more promise than today. But tomorrow, look out!!

By: Paula

Paula — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 16:58:28 +0000

Well, we all know that the mere concept of vacations are foreign to me. But around the holidays I often spend five or six days hanging with the ole niece & nephew (and, well, their parents and the rest of the family), but that's always Christmas week, when none of my editors are working, anyway.

But I'm s HUGE planner. I love lists. I have at least three active lists right now. Work, household, and random things I need to get done. And there is a real sense of accomplishment at crossing something off the list. (Geek alert: I've been known to add things to a list just to cross them off.)

And Lori: My area is at TorCon 6 today. How about you? Seems our storms keep barreling toward you.

By: Lori

Lori — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 14:56:34 +0000

LOL Thanks, Cathy. :)

I think it's okay to mention a vacation - if a client can't understand that we need time off, that's not a client who will work well with us. I've only had one client fuss about my "vacation" I never mentioned, and yes, he was NOT worth the trouble in the end.

By: Cathy

Cathy — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 12:53:51 +0000

I'm with Devon. I don't talk about vacations; however, I haven't had a long one, so I don't know if I would in that situation.

Let's hope I discover what I would say in the not too distant future-a long vacation sounds nice. :-)

Enjoy your vacation, Lori, oops-shh... :-D

By: Lori

Lori — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 12:11:55 +0000

Exactly that. I usually say I'm out of the office. They can come to their own conclusions.