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Hi Reader,

"There are a thousand thousand thousand ways to learn how to meet this world."

Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer, Poet

It’s been a busy past year, and I’ve had my share of stressful situations to work through. I’m sure many of you can relate, especially with how quickly our world keeps changing.

That’s why my annual trip to a beautiful campground felt like such a gift. Nestled in a quiet cove on Georgian Bay in Ontario, Canada, it always gives me exactly what I need to recharge.

This year, for one of these camping days, we had the joy of introducing the newest member of our family, our adopted four-year-old nephew, to the simple pleasure of disconnecting and immersing in nature.

Everything was a first: sleeping in a tent, dutch oven chicken, banana boats over the fire, seeing a sugar shack, a gentle campfire guitar serenade from the neighbouring musician, and meeting a lively water snake we named Baby Bob. And of course, breakfast wouldn’t be complete without snowman-shaped pancakes in the morning!

Camping takes planning, and who better to organize it than a project manager aunt? But once the planning is done, the tents are up, and I’m surrounded by nature, I switch my planning brain off. Completely.

Productivity boost

I once had a client who put it perfectly - they renamed staff vacation days to “recharge time,” even updating their HR system and calendars to match. Over time, they discovered that encouraging employees to take their full time off actually boosted productivity when they returned. They also regularly enforced a strict policy against emails or phone calls outside of regular work hours.

I know I’m a fuller person and a more productive project manager after taking time off to recharge. And for me, recharge time needs to happen every week, not just once a year at a campground.

For my recharge times, it’s a mix of simple joys: spending time with people who truly nourish me, feeling the calm of a lake, dancing to live music, creating art, or wandering through nature with only my thoughts for company.

What’s your idea of a recharge? Is it an afternoon of laughter with friends, a quiet moment by the water, or losing yourself in your favourite song?

Leisure crafting

This article from Harvard Business Review (HBR) explains what I call "recharge time", or what they call “leisure crafting”, as follows:

Here is HBR's criteria for leisure crafting:

1. Design your leisure activities to support your personal goals.
2. Choose activities that encourage meaningful social connections.
3. Engage in hobbies that help you learn new skills or gain knowledge.

That’s it. Sounds easy enough to do, doesn’t it?

Their research showed that people who practice leisure crafting (aka recharge time) experience higher levels of work engagement, creativity, and performance. They also find more meaning in their work compared to those who don’t engage in leisure crafting.

Find your recharge boundaries

A note: recharge time has to be what you want to do, not what your family or friends expect.

For example, hosting a get-together where you handle the planning, hosting, and cleanup isn’t recharging, that’s called work. But if you enjoy get-togethers, and love the planning and hosting while others handle the cleanup, that could count as recharging.

One more quick note: people with grumpy or negative vibes don’t belong in your recharge time. I learned that lesson a long time ago.

What’s your idea of a recharge, so you can return as your fullest self?

I hope you find time to recharge in your own way this month.

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