I always have a few weeks a year where I escape for a little while to unwind and really focus on writing. This is never anything to do with the business side of things. Okay, that’s a small lie, it’s mostly not to do with the business side of things. It’s all about creation. That means plotting and planning new projects, working out when they can be done and what I want to do next. In other words, the fun stuff.

In the next few days, I will be off to do just that. I have a collection of notebooks (one for business, one for new ideas and another specifically for the series I have been working on for several years). It used to be that my suitcase was filled with books for these trips, but now I have replaced them with a kindle and notebooks take up the extra space instead.

I like to take a sabbatical to focus on writing because that is the thing I love. It is the thing that, if I won millions on the lottery, I would still continue to do with as much time and energy. But if writing is not your thing, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t take some time off from regularly scheduled life and reset for a while. Research is continually showing that the most successful people in all areas of life regularly take a break to recalibrate.

The value of taking a break has been apparent to me for years. Juggling two work streams, family, relationships and other commitments can be exhausting, and I know I am nothing special. This is the reality most of us live in now; the 9-5 is dead and most moms can’t afford to stay at home full time even if they wanted to when the cost of living is so high. Life has become about fitting too much in and it is no wonder that most of us feel like we’re on the edge of a precipice just getting through each day. So no matter what it is that takes up the space in your mind, escaping it all for a while (by that I mean for more than just Sunday afternoon when the only thing you are capable of doing is watching TV) is one of the best things you can do to look after yourself.

There may be cocktails, there will hopefully be sun. There will be guilt-free reading and some time to look after my body as well as eat and drink nice things. Mostly, there will be time to vacate the real world, digitally switch off and get back in touch with what I really want from life, not what life is wanting from me.

If there is one thing you do for yourself over the next year, try to do the same. Trust me, it’s worth it. So are you.