It’s common wisdom that sometimes you need to “get away” from your normal day-to-day surroundings. A change of scenery, as it’s often called, can bring renewed energy and fresh perspectives.
The problem, so to speak, is that there’s getting away, and there’s getting away.
As I type this I’m sitting in a travel trailer in a Washington State Park. In some ways it seems silly to sit inside, cooped up, staring at my laptop. I mean, I could do that at home if I wanted to.
And yet, it’s different. The sounds are different. Stepping outside my door is different. The fact that there’s no television reception here is different.
It’s a different environment.
In a way, it’s a forced difference. Even if I didn’t set one foot outside for the duration of my stay, I could not slip back in to the sameness that is my home office.
Naturally, I do set foot outside. Much of what we come here for is time out on the ocean beach, letting the dogs run, enjoying the (hopefully) sunny weather and ocean vistas. That’s a head-clearing exercise if ever there was one, at least for me.
On return to the trailer it’s back to work; nose to the virtual grindstone. But it’s different, in ways that I can’t really express.
Perspectives change.
I would benefit by doing it more.
And so, probably, would you.
Get away. To the extent that you can, do your work somewhere else for a while. Or simply take a vacation.
I know that some don’t consider what I do – bringing my own bed and bath rooms with me – “camping.” If that’s you, great! Slap on a backpack and go out into nature. Or if camping’s not for you, find a hotel or B&B that suites your style and book a couple of nights. (I’ve done exactly that for a “personal retreat” that I would also benefit by doing more often.)
Get away. Clear your head.
Take a notebook. You may also find that clearing your head makes room for more ideas and clarity of thought that you’ll almost certainly want to capture.
It usually does for me.