When I am working with clients, I need to be able to remain fully switched-on at all times.

Senior Managers are often dealing with hard challenges. As a coach, I need to be able to grasp the situation, consider possible options, think about what stance may be best for the situation (eg. coaching, mentoring, teaching, etc), and help the client achieve a satisfactory outcome.

Doing this day-in day-out is exhausting and after a while I know that I am running our of steam and my creativity is drying. I know that I need a break for my body and my mind to recover.

So, for the past decade, I have been aiming to take an annual mini-retirement of 6-8 weeks. It is a practice that has brought me invaluable joy and benefits.

Insights from my annual mini-retirements

1. The necessity of mental rest
   After a while, our minds tire of dealing with tough challenges. I have seen lots of coaches (myself included) that look mentally drained. Switching off is essential.

2. The role of physical rest
   As we age, (i'm almost 50) our bodies don't recover as well or as fast as they used to do. A long break allows my body to fully recover and recharge. It's invigorating and re-energising.

3. Having time to think and reactivate my creativity
   Most of my best ideas happen during my mini-retirements when my mind has time to process all the information I have been accumulating and starts making connections.

4. Having time to something different for me
   While I am working with clients, it is practically impossible to focus on product or concept ideas I have in my mind. During a mini-retirement, it gets to a point when I have rested enough for me to have some fun working on these ideas without any pressure.

5. Disconnecting to maintain an external view
   I've seen coaches that stay with a client for so long that they are no longer able to offer an external & independent view. I call this this The Borg Assimilation Process. Breaking away for a while allows me to remain able to provide an independent view.

Why taking many short breaks is not comparable

I can hear many of my Agile colleagues screaming "big batch!" at me :-)

While I still take several small holidays with my family during the year, their purpose is different. With a short-break, by the time we start to properly disconnect, it is time to get back to work. Instead, mini-retirements are planned to help me recover at a level that short breaks can't reach.

Do you do something similar? I love to hear your stories of how you plan your rest & recovery.