What I Learned From 10 Days of Being Unplugged

When I went on my recent ten-day trip with the Museum of the Bible, I learned so many valuable lessons. One of the major things I took away from the trip was something completely unexpected!

What was that lesson? It was that I can (and should!) be a lot more unplugged and offline!

While I was gone, I was mostly unplugged for the entire time:

• I didn’t have access to my email or blog or social media for hours and hours at a time.
• I didn’t update social media except once or twice a day.
• I went a few days at a time without logging onto my blog at all.
• I only spent 10-20 minutes answering emails every day, if that.  

Before I left on the trip, I planned ahead as best as I could. My team had specifically encouraged me to be offline as much as I could while I was on my trip and they had taken on extra work in order to free me up to have to work as little as possible while I was gone.

{Yes, I truly have the best team — their goal is to take as much off my plate as possible and they are some of the most humble and gracious and amazing people ever! I don’t take it for granted that I get to work with some of best and brightest people who also happen to be some of my dearest friends!}

Being mostly unplugged for 10 days taught me a number of lessons that will continue to impact me for many months to come. Here are 3 of the lessons I learned:

1. Unplugging Was Good for My Soul

I’m so glad I planned to be offline much of the time, because I had no idea that the schedule when we were on the trip was going to be so intense! We were often running non-stop from 7 a.m. until 10 p.m., only to crash in bed and get up and do it again the next day!

As most of you know, MoneySavingMom.com is a huge part of my life (and I love it — even on the tiring days!) and usually takes up at least 40 hours of my week, so it was so good for my soul and spirit for me to have 10 days where I mostly shut that part of my life “off”.

Of course, I missed blogging and scoping and interacting with you all, but I realized that by taking that extended period of time away from the business, I had the incredible opportunity to see so many wonderful sights, meet amazing people, eat lots of delicious food, and experience all sorts of new things. And becauseI had committed to be mostly offline, I was able to fully embrace the moments and fully enjoy each and every opportunity — without worrying about whether things we’re being taken care of online. 

Instead of thinking about the next thing that needed to be done on my list or the next project that I need to work on, as often happens during the week, my brain had the chance to “check out” from business projects altogether. I came away from the experience feeling so refreshed because I was able to do that.

2. Unplugging Encouraged Me to Be More Productive

Not only did I find it very refreshing to take a much needed break from my routine, I also found I could get so much more done when I was only online for short periods of time each day. Because my time was limited, I got things done more quickly and efficiently. 

I’ve found it’s easy for me to fill up whatever time I have. I’m really good at productively procrastinating. And I’m a master at finding things to distract me if I feel like I have wiggle room when working on a project.

For instance, if I have 1 hour to finish a project, I’ll stay really focused and just get it done. But if I have 3 hours to finish the same project, I’ll let myself take multiple breaks to check on something or answer that answer or check on my Facebook Page.

On the trip, because I had such limited time, I thought I would come back way behind on emails and projects. But instead, I discovered that I was so focused and productive because my time was limited that wasn’t behind at all when I got back home! 

3. Unplugging Inspired Me to Work Less Going Forward

My biggest takeaway from unplugging was that I don’t have to be working as much. Not only will working fewer hours be good for my soul and encourage me to be more productive, but I also realized it will motivate me to be very, very careful what I say “yes” to.

I’ve been making saying “no” a huge priority during my Year of Rest, but being unplugged for 10 days helped me to realize I can say “no” even more. Plus, it helped me to realize that I can delegate more to my team. They showed me not only how invaluable they are, but also that I’m not as needed as I sometimes think I am!

As a result of these lessons, I committed to come back and work a lot less. In fact, I’m cutting my work hours almost in half! For real!

Instead of the 40+ hours/week I had been putting in, I’ve restructured things so that I’m only working about 25 hours per week — or 4 hours per day.

It’s only been a few weeks of this schedule, but it’s been so amazing to be online a lot less, have more time for fun and breathing room, and have the ability to spend more time with my husband, my kids, and my real-life community. Plus, I’m staying focused and getting all of the important things done — even though I’ve significantly cut my work hours!

Need some encouragement to unplug more? I highly recommend Rachel Macy Stafford’s book — Hands Free Mama: A Guide to Putting Down the Phone, Burning the To Do List, and Letting Go of a Perfection to Grasp What Really Matters. 

As a Type A gal who struggles to slow down, this book really challenged, impacted, and motivated me. If you need some encouragement to spend less time distracted by devices and busyness, I’d highly recommend this book.