Planning Ahead, Gets You Out of Town

Do you need a break? Time away from your business can rest and recharge you; or it can bring you back to disoriented employees, disgruntled customers, and an Excedrin a headache. In the worst cases, you may find yourself spending your “relaxing” vacation camped on the phone and computer, trying to get things done that would be a snap if you were actually there.

Most small business owners can’t just call their travel agents, pack and leave for the airport when the urge to travel hits them. If they do, it’s more likely to be an attempt to salvage a deal that’s going sour than getting in a week of golf.

What are the keys to taking time off?

Commit to taking your vacation. Decide what you want to do, even if that’s just hanging out, and when the best time is to do it. It’s difficult, though not completely impossible, to take a skiing vacation during the summer in North America. If your heart is set on skiing in July, you may want to book a trip to South America or New Zealand. But if you want to save money on that skiing trip, you may want to schedule it in December – March. Block the time out and plan to make your arrangements.

If you don’t have a good travel agent, the Internet makes it easier than ever to be your own travel agent. One of my favorite sites for inspiration is Arthur Frommer’s Budget Travel at. I usually use www.travelocity.com or www.expedia.com to book my airline tickets, because they’ll let you look at the best price availability. The downside is that you have to manually look at each date to find these bargains. Your travel agent has more powerful search capabilities and can find you great rates or great convenience quickly.

Now that you know when you are going on vacation, the serious work starts. If you work alone and do not plan to have anyone cover your business while you are gone, it is simply a matter of scheduling to get your work done before you leave and pick it up after you return. You may wish to use voice mail and check it regularly, then schedule a half hour each day to return calls. I’ve also found that an increasing number of the people I contact pick up their email every two or three days, even when they’re out of their country.

On my last vacation, I used my backup Hotmail account at a cyber cafe to check in with my partner. Professionals who may have customers need them for emergencies (dentists, for example) often make arrangements for other professionals to take emergency referrals while they are gone.

Trading with other business owners

Another alternative is to trade time with another business owner that you trust.  A few years back when we used to own a scuba diving center in North Carolina, we traded with another diving center, Atlantis diving center.  You’ll have them take care of your business while you’re gone and they can also take a vacation knowing that the mail will be picked up, money and credit card receipts deposited, phone calls answered and your place of business checked.

Good choices are your closest neighbor businesses or a trusted collaborator with whom you have worked. Or you can contract with a virtual assistant, or use a phone answering service. If you run a mail or Web-based seller of goods, you’ll need to also make sure that orders are taken, responded to and shipped.

If you are in a partnership, in some ways you’ve got it made, as long as you stagger your vacation schedules. You can brief your partner on the status of your work before you leave and they can keep the customers feeling happy.

Or your partner can do the work while you are gone, depending on whether they have the same skills that you have. Professionals, such as doctors, often arrange to have a group practice so that they have a number of people who they can trust to keep the business going properly.

If you have employees who will be left in charge while you are gone, you may have more to prepare. Do you have an assistant who is good at running day-to-day activities? If so, you may actually be able to grab that 90% off last-minute deal on a two-month trek in the Himalayas. If you have employees but have never left them in charge during your absence, it makes sense to train one or two of them to run the business on a day-to-day basis.

In addition to vacation, there may be other reasons to leave your business. These include medical reasons, family, and trips to trade shows and professional organizations. While you are buying the new fall line of merchandise, you want your business to be a profitable run in your absence. If you have never left your business before, even if you’ve just started one recently, it’s a good idea to give it a trial run.

Take a long weekend off to reassure yourself that you’ve made the appropriate arrangements and that things will continue smoothly while you are gone. The next few times you take a break, you can extend by a few days.

Decide what is important for you to be involved with and prepare to leave the rest in someone else’s hands. You’ll want to tell the person you’ve left “in charge” how your business normally runs. Once you leave them, they’ll need to be equipped with important phone numbers and names, be on the watch for important items that you expect in the mail and be able to contact you if an emergency occurs. Please define “emergency” since your surrogate’s idea of an emergency may not match your expectations.

Going To A Trade Show Is Not A Vacation

Any time that you go to a seminar or trade show or another tax-deductible business opportunity, it doesn’t really count as a vacation unless you extend the trip by a few days and take genuine downtime. It can be a real strain on you and on family members who are brought along to enjoy a “working vacation” with you. If you are going to try an extended vacation, have them join you after the trade show or seminar.

Sure, your ongoing expenses (hotel, food, entertainment, auto rental) will not be deductible but you can deduct the transportation costs and the legitimate costs of the business portion of the trip, spending cheaper pre-tax dollars instead of take-home pay.

It is reasonable to choose your ongoing training and development opportunities in a pleasant location. It is possible to travel to London or entertain clients at the Super Bowl and get tax benefits as long as you know the rules. One site that can help you find the training you need at a location that you want is the Training and Seminar Locator at http://www.tasl.com/. You can sort classes by subject and by location quickly and effectively. This website requires that the companies and schools that offer training through this site provide a high level of quality, regardless of price point.

Check with your industry trade associations or professional groups to find opportunities to piggyback pleasure on business. Another good web resource is Trade Show Central.

If you are counting on making your trip deductible, it may be a good idea to give your CPA a call before you book it. Alternatively, you can go on over to the IRS’ website and look at “Travel, Entertainment, Gift, and Car Expenses” at http://www.irs.gov/ to find out what is deductible and where they draw the line.

If You’re Going To Be Gone For More Than A Week

If you are not going to return calls until your return, you may want to leave a “vacation greeting” on your voicemail. Let your customers know that you will be unavailable until you return, then set aside the next day after you come back to return all of their phone calls.

Arrange to have your bills paid on time while you are gone. Having a good credit rating gives you a lot of options and making a payment as late as 10 days can count against you.

Make sure that someone physically checks your place of business. Pipes can freeze in winter, doors can be left open and other problems can occur that will be much easier to deal with if your business is checked regularly. Possible choices, besides friends, colleagues, and family, include your landlord or property manager. Some small towns still will assign patrol officers to put a “vacation watch” on businesses and homes as well.

Once You’ve Returned

Regardless of what you’ve learned or experienced on your vacation, your everyday routine will be waiting when you return. If you walk back into your business with a fresh perspective, you may find that you can make some changes to make it run more smoothly and efficiently. Take the first day or two to catch up on things that happened while you were gone before you plunge into a series of meetings or sales calls.

Review how well things ran while you were gone and consider writing the results up briefly so that you can refer to them the next time you leave. Finally, thank the people who made it possible for you to get away, whether it was another business owner doing double duty, a partner or employees that gave you the freedom to go.