Workation: what is it and what are its benefits?

In the world of work, more and more ways of enhancing employee performance are being put into practice, combining it with new ways of understanding work. And this is usually achieved by improving both their conditions and their experience during the working day.

Workation is one of the new forms of work with which many people around the world have increased both their performance and their well-being by working in holiday contexts, using strategies so that, on the one hand, they can organize themselves better and improve their productivity, and on the other, this fusion between work and leisure does not produce problems. It is not about having less vacation time and dedicating part of it to work, but about integrating work and leisure hours in a different and more organic way.

If you want to know in depth this new way of vacationing while working, keep reading; Here we will break down the essential concepts of workation, as well as its advantages and disadvantages.

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What is workation?

Workation is an increasingly popular type of work, especially in the business world, which consists of incorporate vacations into the working day with the aim of increasing their productivity and personal well-being by not subjecting people to the pressure of preparing a vacation of total disconnection. And it is that, although many times it is not talked about, in some jobs going on vacation can mean extra work during the previous days, and greater exposure to stress.

It is an Anglo-Saxon term product of the union between the words "work" (work) and "vacation" (vacation), so could be considered a vacation job or a vacation that we take during the work day.

Workation has been used in numerous organizations and transnational companies around the world and its benefits have been demonstrated both in improving employee productivity and in improving their general well-being and health mental.

There are many forms of workation, and nowadays more inventive and various ways of integrating vacations with work found by both companies and their employees.

Working modalities

There are several ways in which companies and workers put this form of work into practice; the most common is the one practiced by the so-called “digital nomads” self-employed workers who settle for relatively long periods of time in another country to work in a new environment.

The way in which companies enable workation can be based on offering team building days or workation camps organized in vacation destinations, where your employees can enjoy a relaxing vacation while working at the hotel or other scenarios.

On the other hand, a more conventional version of korkation assumes redistribute vacation days by making them more, and including very short work periods on some of those days. For example: work from 10 to 11 a.m. to solve the doubts of the rest of the team, attend to incidents, leave instructions about the tasks to be done to the team members, etc.

We can also find a somewhat more radical practice in some companies, which consists of moving their offices to beach or mountain vacation spots for several weeks, which It supposes an incentive to a large extent for its employees when it comes to working better and increasing their interest in remaining in the organization, supposing a retention mechanism of the talent.

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Advantages of the workout

There are many advantages of this work practice in the employee, below we will briefly summarize the most important psychologically.

1. new environment

The new environment in which the employee will work is a real incentive and a push of energy that helps you get the best out of yourself to work hard on your obligations labor.

A change of scenery is always appreciated, especially in repetitive jobs in which one must concentrate and make the maximum effort so that everything goes well, and working in a vacation or leisure environment is always more grateful than working in an office.

Likewise, working in a new city or country also offers the possibility of meeting new cultures, different people and relax in paradisiacal places to recharge during the hours of break.

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2. Improvement of personal well-being in the face of work stress

As has been indicated, working in a different place than usual supposes a real boost both for the employee's energies and for their self-esteem, psychological state and well-being in general, especially if the strategy involves spending more time out of the office.

As has been proven countless times, a person who works in better conditions will also be happier and perform better in their workplace.

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3. disconnection

The possibility of being on vacation while working also allows us to disconnect to a greater extent than if we were in our usual place of work; Although it seems counterintuitive, "mixing work and vacations", if done well, helps us forget about work and stop worrying about whether we have left something unattended.

The possibility of getting to know new environments and being able to enjoy a holiday environment or days off also has a positive influence on the employee's health.

4. Productivity improvement

The improvement of productivity is, as has been indicated, one of the most visible advantages offered by the implementation of workation, something that positively influences both the worker and the business.

That is one of the reasons why more and more companies and organizations use this useful and positive work strategy for everyone.

Possible drawbacks

Some of the main drawbacks when working in the workation modality are the following.

1. distractions

Distractions are the main inconvenience that we can find in the workation modality, since when we find ourselves in a vacation environment there are many times when one is tempted to go for a walk on the beach or to do any leisure activity.

Likewise, some workers may have difficulty concentrating in a new work environment that they are not used to.

To overcome all these temptations, it is recommended to prioritize work over rest and first fulfill all the work obligations with which one is committed.

2. Difficulty of adaptation

The same way, it may also happen that some employees have certain difficulties in adapting to the new environment, either because they are used to their usual workplace or because they are unable to concentrate or organize themselves properly in the new situation.

Adaptation difficulties are common and perfectly normal in workation situations, so it is recommended not to worry too much and try to enjoy the new experience.

Do you want to improve the emotional well-being of your workers?

If you want to turn your company into an environment that offers psychological assistance to workers and ensures their emotional well-being, mindgram is for you.

This digital platform allows organizations to give access to psychotherapy sessions by video call to their employees, and allows them to You can also access podcasts and courses on psychology and emotional management, materials for meditating and practicing Mindfulness or relaxation techniques, etc. If you want to know more, contact the Mindgram team through this page.