How to Maintain Your Business's Social Media Presence While You're on Vacation

I just spent the last ten days in Florida.

Except I wasn't on vacation. Not really, anyway. 

Even though I was in another country, lying on the beach most of the time, I still feel obligated to fit in my 8-hour workday responsibilities, which was extremely difficult given the allure of the sun and the on-average 29° temperatures and my parents' constant reminders of how pale I am.

I had a hard time staying on track with my typical daily routine, and I'd have to have been delusional to think I could follow my strict schedule to a "T" in vacation mode. So how do some people do it? How do they go away for weeks at a time and manage to maintain some kind of social media/business presence? I've compiled a list of ways (and subsequently a short rhyme, because things are better when they rhyme) to help you stay on track with your work responsibilities when you go on vacation.

Schedule

Properly scheduling your posts isn't just about knowing what you plan to post on which days, but about having those pictures, blog posts, and hashtags ready to go so you can get them over with in less than a minute. Sure, some people are actually organized and plan these things ahead of time already, but some of you must be like me: waiting until the last minute then all of a sudden you're like, "Oh yeah, I need to post something today!"

While I do schedule photoshoot days where I get a bunch of flat lay shots, a few selfies, and a few other content pictures out of the way, I don't actually plan which photos will be posted on which days. It's the same with blog posts and Tweets; I don't plan specific days to post, I just post as soon as I get to it. 

With a regular structured schedule, it's not a huge deal if you're planning your content day-by-day, but by planning ahead, you can go on vacation and actually enjoy your vacation without creating unnecessary stress everyday that you're away. (After all, you're supposed to be forgetting about work.)

Create

Sometimes I'll have a few days-worth of posts ready and just as I'm about to post, I'll look at a picture and decide I hate it and have to find something new. Tastes change and sometimes what you had planned doesn't feel right in the moment. Try to have some extra content ready to post in case you decide at the last minute you really don't want to post that workspace picture, or you've suddenly decided you hate that selfie you were going to post.

Despite having my entire social media scheduled while I was away, I think I changed every single post I had planned anyway. I don't write blog posts very frequently, but it would be the same idea for someone who likes to post on their blog once a week: have more finished posts than you need, so you have options when the time comes to post.

(How many times do you think I can say post?) 

Incorporate

To me this is kind of the lazy man's way of staying on top of things (so naturally, the way I do it). It's like "I ran out of ideas for what to post, so I'm just going to wait until I'm on vacation to post pictures from my trip"--and that's totally valid! I find it's actually very effective and that travel pictures garner more engagement than other pictures do when they're posted periodically. Unless you're a travel blogger/writer, littering your social media accounts with travel pictures is very misleading of your brand (I also thing the whole travel-fashion-lifestyle Instagrammer thing is so overdone and completely unoriginal), but a few here and there is a nice and aesthetically appealing change for your audience. 

Or, do what I did and write something based on your trip, like How to Do Such-and-Such While You're on Vacation, or 5 Non-Touristy Things to Do in X-Country. 

When you're scheduling your posts for the next X-amount of days, for organization's sake, just allot specific days to travel post like you would any other post. I knew I wanted a workspace picture while I was in Florida, but obviously couldn't get one until I was in Florida, so I said, "On this day, I'm going to find a coffee shop to work in, and I'm going to take a picture of my workspace setup." It also motivated me to actually get off the beach for a bit to go to a coffee shop and do work.

Yes, we live in a very work-obsessed time where people work 60-hours a week and only get two weeks of paid vacation a year, but if you're lucky enough to work from home or be your own boss, I think it's important to make the most of that freedom and get out into the world once in awhile. Hopefully these tips can help you plan ahead so you can make the most of your holidays. 

Why Freelancers and Work-From-Homers Should Work From Around the World

One of the biggest benefits of working from home is the ability to work from anywhere. As long as you're getting the job done, who really cares where it's from? I'm a huge advocate that any work-from-home creative-type not only can work from around the world, but should. 

Working from around the world can inspire and influence your work in such a different way than working from the familiarity of your own home ever could. Immersing yourself in a new culture, feeling like you're on vacation (and thus less pressure to get a certain amount of work done in a set amount of time), and being exposed to different sites and scenery can give you a whole new perspective on life and in whatever it is that you do in your career. And in the end, isn't the goal to expand our perspectives and better ourselves?

You Get to Immerse Yourself in a New Culture

I don't know if it's because Toronto isn't exactly known for its rich history, or if it's some kind of placebo effect, but being in a different culture altogether gave me newfound motivation. The Icelandic lifestyle, for example, is so unbelievably slow, which stressed me out at first, having become accustomed to the fast-pace city life. But once I got comfortable with the slow pace, I was able to approach my work with a fresher, more laid-back perspective. Your environment has a much larger effect on your work style than you might think, and just like switching it up from working at your desk to working in a coffee shop benefits your work ethic and increases productivity, so does switching your location on a much larger scale.

Less Stress Because You're "on Vacation"

I like working on weekends more so than during the week. There's really no difference between working on a Wednesday and working on a Saturday, and it's not as if time freezes on the weekend, thus allowing us to get more work done. The difference is that on weekends, I don't put pressure on myself to sit at a desk for eight hours and get twenty different tasks done. It's the same case when I'm travelling. I feel like I'm on vacation and therefore don't feel pressured to get work done. Instead, I choose to work because I'm inspired and because I love what I do. It makes a great deal of difference in my productivity when I'm not pushing myself to think creatively within a structured schedule, but instead work as I become inspired. 

Get Inspired by Different Scenery

Working abroad requires a conscious work-sightseeing balance. Obviously you'll want to explore as many landmarks as possible while you're in a new country, but you still need to find the time to work. Personally, I don't care for sightseeing; I'm happy sitting in a cafe just knowing I'm in a new country. If you're a sightseeing fiend, try fitting your work in during breakfast, or get a couple hours in before going to sleep at night. Travelling shouldn't be stressful, and the whole purpose is to be inspired by the city you're in. If an 8 hour tour is what's going to inspire you to write a great article or paint a beautiful picture, do it. You can always get your work done later. 

During my 10-hour tours in Iceland, two women on my bus made notes every time we stopped at a new site, and jotted down extra notes as we headed to the next site. All it takes are a few brief notes to refresh your memory at the end of the day, when you can finally sit down to get your work done. 

And finally, the last and best reason to work from around the world: It's an excuse to travel! 

Stockholm, Sweden

After 3 days in Copenhagen, I met up with my brother, who had been in Denmark for a conference, and we headed to Stockholm, Sweden. After a smooth, relaxing train ride there, my life decided things were going a little too well, and I forgot my camera and passport under my seat. Almost as if to torture me, I realized just in time to make it back to the train, but also just late enough to watch it drive away, and I was overcome by a flood of emotions (panic mainly, but also kind of hopefulness that I'd be stuck in Sweden for the rest of my life). We spent the day running around the city: first to the Canadian Embassy, then to get new passport photos taken (let me tell you: the best way to see the most of a city is to lose your passport.), and just as I’d come to terms with the fact that I’d have to have all my stuff shipped over and learn Swedish, the train company informed us that they had found my stuff (*bittersweet cheering*). 

I really wanted to make the most of being in another country, and made an effort to order as culturally accurate meals as possible. For dinner, we ate at a restaurant called Slingerbulten, where we had Swedish meatballs (note: way better than Ikea’s), pike-perch with a chanterelle sauce, and a delicious Swedish IPA called Brutal Bulldog. 

The next day, we went on a self-guided hike around the Stockholm archipelagoes. We booked the hike through an excursion company who provided us with a map, a compass, and a backpack filled with lunch, snacks, and water. To be honest, the route the company had given us was pretty boring, so we took matters into our own hands and started climbing the tallest rocks we could find to get the widest view of the water. 

When we got back to the city, we wandered over to the Gamla Stan, attempted to visit the Nobel Museum (sadly, it was closed), and had dinner at a restaurant called The Flying Elk. We hated our meal; it made us both feel nauseous, and we were so disappointed, so to make ourselves feel better, we got some delicious Belgian waffles and chilled in the old streets. 

On our third day in Sweden, we took a train over to Gothenburg, the country’s second largest city. We visited an amusement park more so for the cotton candy and pictures than to go on rides. I’m a busy-city girl, so I wasn’t a huge fan of Gothenburg, but the seafood: omg. We ate at a restaurant called Sjöbaren, and our meal was indescribable. We learned from the couple we shared a table with that most seafood restaurants aren’t open on Sundays because there is no fishing on Saturday, so of course, they don’t want to serve old fish. Sjöbaren however, does fish on Saturday, so we got so lucky that they were open. 

From Gothenburg, we took a ferry to Frederikshavn, and then took another train to Aarhus, Denmark, where we had 5 hours to kill before catching our last train back to Copenhagen. In all honesty, I didn't enjoy Aarhus very much, either because it's another very small town or because I was exhausted from the whole trip and kind of just wanted to get home. The ARoS museum is beautiful though, and I was pretty upset they were closed and that I was only able to get the below picture. 

All in all I had a great trip, and learned a lot about solo traveling and the Nordic lifestyle. Iceland is definitely a country to visit for more than 3 days and if you are an adventurous person. The Nordic countries are very slow paced, very eco-friendly, and very happy. It is completely understandable why they're some of the safest and happiest countries in the world, and I think that either the rest of the world should follow suite, or we should all pack our bags and start learning Swedish (or Danish, or Icelandic).

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Copenhagen, Denmark

Copenhagen probably stole my heart in a very comparable way to Paris. The architecture, the food, the beautiful people... Also, the fact that it's much more populated and easier to get around than Iceland. Denmark was a breath of fresh air (figuratively speaking, of course) from the emptiness of Iceland, because I was actually able to get my bearings.

I bought a city pass for the three days I was here, but ended up walking for the most part. I didn't figure out the CPH wifi until my flight home, so when I got off the plane, I hopped on the metro and got off at a stop that was labeled "city". Among all the ø's and aa's and words I wouldn't even attempt to pronounce, I was relieved when I finally saw a name I recognized: Starbucks.  

Once I figured out where things were, I got tacos from a place called Hija de Sanchez at an outdoor food market (I was still too embarrassed to whip out my DSLR for a food pic at this point...).

I made my way over to the round tower (Rundetaarn), which may not be one of the tallest buildings in Copenhagen, but offers an amazing bird's eye view of the city. You also get an amazing workout running up the spiral cobblestone floor to the top.

On day 2, I made it my mission to try Grød. Apparently porridge is a huge breakfast trend in Denmark, and this place had a whole menu full of different variations of what we'd probably consider a pretty disgusting, last-resort breakfast. 

Grød (porridge) with apple slices, almonds, and caramel sauce

After breakfast, I went to Christiania, a small hippie town in the city that has its own laws (or lack thereof). It was probably the "least safe" that I felt the entire trip, but really that's not saying much because Denmark is only preceded by Iceland in terms of safety. 

I specifically waited until 10pm to visit the Tivoli theme park in the middle of the city because I wanted to see it in all its lit up glory. Christmas was 9 months ago so I needed my pretty-light fix, and Tivoli did not disappoint. 

On my last full day in Denmark, I had to do all the touristy stuff I usually hate doing. After an extremely (ful)filling breakfast at Mad og Kaffe, I walked to Nyhavn (which apparently means new harbour!) specifically to take generic pictures of the bright buildings that line the waterfront. Then I took a canal tour because of course I wanted to learn about the history of Nyhavn. I got ice cream just to take a picture, ate a very expensive (and delicious) dinner from Manfreds, had a beer at my super-cool hostel, Sleep in Heaven, then passed out so I'd be up for my 8am train to Sweden the next morning. 

Somewhere along this trip I also did a brewery tour and beer tasting at the Carlsberg brewery, but honestly, I couldn't tell you when. The beer was delicious though.

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Reykjavik, Iceland

My first day in Iceland involved sitting in three different coffee shops as a means to force myself to stay awake and not succumb to the jet lag. 

I felt really overwhelmed when I got to Keflavik Airport, because I don't speak Icelandic, couldn't figure out the bus schedule, and ended up wandering around cluelessly for about an hour. I thought I could live like a local and handle public transportation, but realized that's not possible when every bus stop name sounds the same and buses come every 20+ minutes. I ended up taking a FlyBus into the city which still dropped us off in the middle of nowhere, and I spent 25 minutes trying to get to the Hallgrímskirkja Church (like 10 buses passed me by, but I was irrationally determined to walk there...). It was 8am. Nothing is open at 8am on a Saturday in Iceland. 

I ended up exploring the small city for a couple hours to kill time until the stores opened, and walked down to the waterfront where I ended up finding the Harpa Concert Hall (totally by accident - please don't ever think that I could navigate a city successfully). At first I was disappointed that I was seeing Harpa on a cloudy day because I had been looking forward to seeing the sunlight reflecting off the panels of the entirely-glass building, but then I realized how beautiful the hall still looks on the greyest day with all the random colourful panels! 

I stopped in Te Og Kaffi (which I've established is the Starbucks equivalent in Iceland) to rest and figure out where the heck I was, and learned my first lesson of the Icelandic lifestyle: it's SO. SLOW. PACED. omg. It was stressing me out to watch people order their drinks and take ten minutes to pay. Once I had finally made it to my hostel, I befriended one of my roommates who happened to be Icelandic, and he invited me to get coffee with him and his friend, where I learned a lot about Icelandic culture, like the fact that they're building their first mosque in Reykjavik! I also learned that an Icelandic Christmas tradition is to leave a shoe out a few nights leading up to Christmas, where children find a present every morning! 

Reykjavik is an unexpectedly artistic city: the streets are strewn with independent clothing & jewellery designers, unique secondhand shops, and random, eclectic stores, and so many well-known musicians come from not only Iceland, but Reykjavik City, specifically (Of Monsters and Men, Björk, Sigur Rós). On the other hand though, it's exactly what you'd expect it to be: empty, desolate, and bleak, but a stunning juxtaposition to the vibrant buildings. 

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I know myself enough to know I'd never have survived alone in Reykjavik city for 3 days. The bus system is confusing, street names are way too hard to pronounce, and the cost of visiting one site can be as much as 15,000 ISK (~$170 CAD). I figured it made more sense to sign up for a few tours with Reykjavik Excursions, which cost about the same as a round trip bus ride, but include a tour guide and multiple stops along the way to make the most of the 3+ hours of driving each way (also, almost no chance of me getting lost). 

On my second day, I did a 12 hour tour to the Landmannalaugar mountains in the Highlands of Iceland. Along the way we stopped at Ljotipollur, a massive red crater that was formed by a volcanic explosion, Þjóðveldisbærinn, a reconstructed medieval farm, and the Hjalparfoss waterfalls.

We arrived in Landmannalaugar several hours (and bruised bums) later, where we were given directions for a self-guided tour in Laugavegur, one of the shorter trails in the Fjallabak area. 

Of course, with my luck we got lost, and our hour-long hike turned into a two hour-long hike. On the plus side, it was a GREAT workout, and eventually we made it back in time to spend the last hour relaxing in the hot springs. Although it was exhausting, hiking through Landmannalaugar was probably one of the most exhilarating things I've ever experienced. 

On day 3, I took a tour along Iceland's south shore where we visited sites like Seljalandsfoss, Skogarfoss, Reynisfjara, a black sand beach along the Atlantic Ocean, the small village of Vík, the Skógar Folk Museum, and some glaciers. 

The weather was not quite as cooperative on the 3rd day, and it poured on and off throughout, which made the tour a little less enjoyable than the previous one. You can actually walk behind the Seljalandsfoss waterfall, which I would imagine is more exciting on sunny days, and not when you're already drenched. 

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To top off the day (and my visit to Iceland), I stopped by Babalu, a very small, eclectic restaurant/cheesecake place, specifically to take a picture in their Star Wars-themed bathroom. I then stopped at the Lebowski Bar, which is (pretty self-explanatorily) named after the movie The Big Lebowski. Again, specifically to get a picture, and also to FINALLY try Icelandic beer (can you believe it took me 3 days to finally try it?!).

If I were to sum up my experience in Iceland in one word, I'd say it was introspective. Solo travelling in itself is very conducive to self-awareness, and I think the added vastness of the country makes one realize a) how beautiful nature can be if we leave it alone (especially after having come from Toronto), and b) how small we are in respect to the world. If I were to go back, I'd definitely go with a friend or two, and rent a camper in order to cover the most ground. Guided tours are a great option when you're alone or only there for a few days, but the two+ hours back to the hostel after every tour could have been used more efficiently with the ability to camp at each location. 

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