How to Promote Open Time-Off Requests

Take time off. Real, computer-free, notifications-silenced time off. I recognize, for some of you, the prospect of doing this is terrifying. 😥 "What will happen while I'm away?" 😥 "Will I come back to a pile of work?" 😥 "What if a client needs something from me?" 😥 "People are counting on me." Leaders, this is why it's 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗲𝗻𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 to just "𝗼𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿" PTO. You have to require it, encourage it, and support it. Here's how: ✅ Build in redundancies; the success of your business shouldn't hinge on the availability of one person - even 𝘆𝗼𝘂. ✅ Ensure business continuity; deputize someone to be responsible in place of the employee on leave. Make sure they have what they need to be successful. ✅ Ease them out of (and back into) the work; leading up to and upon return from vacation, keep a couple of days light on meetings so they can effectively transition out and back into "work mode". ✅ Model these behaviors yourself; leaders need a break, too. Who are you developing on your team to carry things forward so you can take time to refresh too? Do I check-in occasionally via email or WhatsApp when I’m on vacation? Of course! When my kids are asleep and my wife is winding down, I’ll occasionally flick through a few emails to make sure no clients were being left waiting for a response. But I always fully disconnect from my laptop - which allows me to refresh, refocus, and remind myself why I do what I do: For moments like these with my family. 💡In the rush of life, don't forget to invest time and energy back into the reasons that you work in the first place. #PTO #Rest #Performance #Culture #Leadership

Embracing a Healthy Work-Life Balance: My Perspective on Permission and PTO I advocate for a workplace culture where requesting permission for personal time off (PTO) should be unnecessary. PTO is a right earned through negotiation, not a privilege to be granted or denied. Instead of asking, I encourage my team to communicate their plans clearly and put them into our system as per company policy, allowing for effective planning and coverage. Teams should collaborate on managing priorities and coverage, ensuring that work continues smoothly even during absences. If urgent tasks arise, we adjust collectively. Most importantly, I prioritize avoiding burnout by fostering a culture where PTO is respected and encouraged. My approach stems from basic leadership principles: empower your team, ensure productivity through effective planning, and support work-life balance. Denying PTO goes against these values. Ultimately, it's about mutual respect and trust. Let's remember, work should enhance our lives, not consume them. So, communicate your needs, enjoy your time off, and bring back stories to enrich our workplace community. #WorkLifeBalance #Leadership #PTO #Employee Wellbeing #Teamwork

The holiday request that never gets submitted says more about your culture than the ones that do. If people don’t know what they’re entitled to, don’t understand the process, or feel awkward asking for time off, you don’t just have an admin problem. You have a trust problem. Building Leave Dates, I’ve seen this repeatedly with small and growing businesses. There’s often an assumption that “we’ve got a policy written down, so we’re covered”. But having a policy isn’t the same as being transparent. True transparency means your team can answer these questions without digging through emails or asking their manager: → How much leave do I have left? → Who needs to approve my request? → How long does approval usually take? → Can I see the live status of my request? When those answers aren’t obvious, people hesitate. They second-guess whether it’s “a good time” to ask. They worry about how it will be perceived. And over time, that quietly erodes trust. If you want to build a healthier culture around time off, start here: ✅ Make entitlements visible Everyone should be able to see their remaining leave at a glance – no spreadsheets and no chasing HR. ✅ Clarify the process Be explicit about who approves what, typical timelines, and what happens in unusual situations. ✅ Create feedback loops Ask your team what’s confusing about your current setup. Then show them what you’ve changed as a result. The companies that get this right don’t just manage holidays more efficiently. They create an environment where taking time off feels normal and expected. Not a negotiation. One thing building Leave Dates has shown me: the right tools don’t just reduce admin. They make transparency the default. Ask yourself - Have you ever avoided taking time off work?

#ManagerMonday Tip: "Too busy for vacation." Let's talk about vacations! No seriously, let's talk about them more at work - and proactively, rather than begrudgingly approving requests. Taking time off is valuable for employee well-being and productivity (I'll add a link in the comments). As a manager, "leadership" means supporting your team members in taking those well-deserved breaks. How can you do that? - Lead by Example: Show your team that it's not just okay, but important, to take time off by prioritizing your own vacations and communicating about them openly. - Plan Ahead: Encourage your team to plan their vacations in advance so that their work can be delegated or scheduled accordingly to get it done without requiring a "working vacation." - Set Clear Expectations: Clearly communicate expectations regarding work coverage and availability during vacations - ideally, that's "not at all." You can use out-of-office messages and processes to help team members come back from vacation without having a pile of emails waiting for them, or trying to figure out what's been handled. - Cross-Training: Ensure that there are plans in place by cross-training those team members to handle each other's responsibilities while someone is away (so time off isn't "off-ish"). - Celebrate Time Off: Acknowledge and celebrate team members' vacations to show that you appreciate their hard work and value their well-being. If these steps sound simple and common, far from it. Ask your team members if they've had managers who have supported their taking time off. My guess? "Um, pretty much the opposite." That's why when you do support them, you make a difference for your team members - and their family and friends. #managertips #vacation #timeoff #monday

PTO is essential, but a lot of people struggle to take time off. Why is that? In my experience, it's not that people don't want a break (they do!). Instead, there are several invisible barriers keeping employees from taking the time they need. With that in mind, here are a few ways leaders can make it easier for teams to take some much-needed time off: 1) Lead by example. When people see leadership taking time away from work, it makes them feel like they can too. At Novant Health HR, we call this being PTO loud! 2) Make sure workloads are covered. It's not worth taking a vacation if you're just going to return to a mountain of late work. A good coverage system will keep stress low while making sure tasks still get done. 3) Encourage taking PTO for 'no reason'. You don't have to have a plan--sometimes it's just nice to have a day off! As an HR senior leadership team, we committed to do this personally to lead by example with our teams and make it appealing for our remarkable people to do the same! What strategies would you add here? #HR #Culture #Burnout