This was originally posted on my Hawaii Travel Journal.
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Our first few days in Kona were standard. We got some morning coffee, I rolled into work at 7am, grinded out some code, and clocked out by 3pm. The evenings were filled with walks, historic sites (more on hawaiian history here), and sunsets by the small beach near our Airbnb known as “Keiki Beach Queen’s Bath”.
By merging the energies of work and life in this way, I’ve realized that I genuinely enjoy working on meaningful projects while on vacation. It sounds counterproductive, but I find it difficult to fully disconnect for over 3 days without getting restless. I like being able to choose this lifestyle, and it might be that choice that makes all the difference. Over the course of a week, here’s how I’d like to spend a vacation:
- 3-4 days of intense & focused work on something meaningful (for no more than 6 hours per day)
- Evenings and a long weekend of exploration, physical activity, time spent with loved ones, hobbies, and curiosity-driven learning
I like to blend my vacations with meaningful work and balance the polarities of being “On and Off”. The conventional notion of a “vacation” in which you work intensely for several months and then chill by a beach resort with cocktails for a week just doesn’t appeal to me. After being “on” for so long, it takes a while to turn “off” if you’re not regularly exercising that skill. I’d much rather shorten the feedback loop by going hard for a few days at a time, fully relaxing for a bit, and then getting back at it. Eventually, I hope to turn this ideal vacation lifestyle into my everyday existence.