On a recent business trip, I overheard a conversation from the folks sitting behind me on the airplane...

On a recent business trip, I overheard a conversation from the folks sitting behind me on the airplane.  The young lady was from Denmark and she had just graduated, but was taking a year off before starting college to travel around Europe.  My daughter is getting ready to start college, so I thought about how I would feel if she told me she was going to backpack through Europe for the next 12 months instead of heading off to college!  Yikes!  Well in Denmark, as in other parts of Europe, this is a very common practice.    In fact, adults taking “holiday” is accepted and embraced by many European cultures.  In the US, some adults do not make vacation a priority.  In the real estate world, I often see agents who don’t feel they have time to take vacation, or if they do, they wind up working on vacation.  I think we can and should take a clue from our European cousins and take time to stop and TRULY unplug, even if for just a few days each year.  That would mean turning off your phone and email during the day so you can really be in the moment with your friends or family.  If you are not part of a real estate team, connect with an agent that shares similar business practices, and agree to trade off watching each other’s business.  Our office offers a showing agent program where you have access to agents that are available to show homes for your clients while you are out of town.  So as the busy summer season winds down, take a moment and plan some time to recharge, renew, and reenergize!