Asheville Photographer | 5 Reasons I LOVE Working Vacations

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Often, when I tell people that I am leaving my beautiful town of Asheville, NC and taking my photography business on the road for a month, as a solo entrepreneur and small business owner, they look at me like “How the heck are you able to do that?” Here’s how: I just do it. Life is full of so many unneeded responsibilities, “shoulds”, and “what ifs”, that sometimes we just need to take a pause, think about what our soul needs, and make it happen. For me, that often comes in the form of travel. 

For many years, I only traveled the most traditional way. I spent lots of extra hours working so that I could take one to two weeks off of work, fly somewhere, play all day every day, and go home to a pile of work. Sure, I do still do that sometimes, because if I didn’t, there would likely be no trip. And I know that for many people, this is the only option they have for travel. I realize that I am extremely fortunate to be able to travel the way that I do. Because I am so fortunate and have flexibility, I also now take working vacations, which is a combination of work and play. There are many reasons to love this style of travel, where I am still working 100% in my business. 

1. I can travel for a longer amount of time

With a working vacation, I have the opportunity to settle in one or two locations where I can work, giving me the balance of work and play. Since I continue to work four days a week, my business keeps moving forward, allowing me to stay away from home longer. 

2. There is more time to play

By leaving my home, where there is a never ending to-do list, I can step away from weekly chores like taking care of the yard, house maintenance, and more. This means that besides the daily chores of cooking and cleaning the little house I rent, I have no to-do list! I can work all day, and play all evening, without the guilt of needing to get other things done!

3. Life is slower

Being in a new place slows me down, so that I can take it all in. Yes, I spend lots of time playing (hiking, biking, exploring, and more), but I also allow myself to take the extra fifteen minutes to walk to the chiropractor instead of driving, ride my bike to the grocery store instead of driving, and take more walks with my dog. 

4. It’s a perfect life and work reset

Even though I’m working while on a working vacation, being away from my home and everyday stressors allows me to have a much needed reset. I have less to worry about, and that is gold.

5. I get to have more in depth time with my family

My working vacations include my husband and my dog, which I love! For us, we love the time spent driving to our destination together (even if it’s a 28+ hour drive to Montana or Colorado), the extra time we spend together on adventure days, the extra walks with our dog, and overall, the additional time that we get to chat and hang out because we don’t have that to-do list to tend to.

This trip, we are spending our time in western Colorado, where I love all the new hikes, change of pace, and the overall feel. Since we are in the desert, the landscape here is much different than on the east coast, but equally beautiful! 

To see some family photography that I captured during our working vacations, click over to Yellowstone National Park Photography at Gardner River | Hutchings Family Session Preview and Big Sky Montana Photography at Gallatin River | Kashtyn’s 6 Month Session Preview. 

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