It's common knowledge that Japan is the foreign culture most emulated by geeks. From anime to J-rock to Gothic Lolita fashion, Japanese stuff is everywhere – and it's even seeped into the geeky output of North American media companies. (For more proof of this, see Marvel's new anime series, otherwise known as Iron Gainax Man.)
However, there is one area where you most definitely do NOT want to emulate the Japanese – vacation time. A new study shows the Japanese use less vacation time than anyone else on the planet.
Of course, we all know about their go-go work ethic, and how it helped them to become major players on the world stage. But that go-go ethic has a price - burnout and stress. In recent years, the traditional work-and-nothing-else salaryman has moderated his lifestyle a bit, so we're less likely to have Japanese children grow up without ever knowing their fathers.
If you're on an upward career path, and trying to establish yourself, it's very easy to fall into the salaryman trap. You may think that you can't afford to take vacation time, that you have to keep working to keep your professional momentum going. You may feel guilty that you're saddling your co-workers with your work, or apprehensive that you'll come back to find everything you've worked on before you left is now screwed up.
But you have to think of this: The potential cost of not taking vacation time, of not giving yourself a few days to push the reset button, might be more than the slight inconvenience going away for a few days can cause. (If you lay preparations before you leave – leaving to-do lists for the people who are going to be covering your duties, informing your contacts of when you'll be gone, etc. – chances are, your fears of coming home to a mess will be unfounded).
Piled-up stress can result in all kinds of physical, mental and emotional complications – not only headaches and indigestion, but also hypertension. It can put strain on relationships and leave you unable to enjoy what leisure time you have, because you're constantly worried about work.
If you don't think you can afford a week away, try to schedule long weekends for yourself several times during the year – such as a con. (Hey, there's professional networking opportunities there, so you're helping your career, right?) A good rule of thumb is to make sure you take one extended weekend every season – that uses up less than half of your allotted two-week vacation time.
Work-life balance is of vital importance. Someone who's relaxed and happy will be successful in all areas of life, personal and professional.
Oh, and the people who got the most vacation time? The French. Not exactly a nation usually associated with geekery (despite a strong graphic novel culture that includes both French manga translations by the tons and French-native comics for readers of all ages), but hey, in this case, this is where they, and not the Japanese, are the kings of cool.
- Bonnie Walling