65% of employees lose their annual leave – how to make sure you don’t!
A recent study found that 65% of workers don’t take all their annual leave days, with 17% having five or more days left over at the end of the year.
In the UK, any statutory annual leave entitlement that has not been used is usually lost – so if you don’t use it, you will probably lose it. Despite this, and the fact that mental health experts have been saying for years that breaks are just as important to your productivity as focus, we seem to be having trouble taking time off.
As we have just started 2025, and a new allotment of holiday time, Tim Brown, the founder of Hook Agency shares his top 10 tips on how to make the most of your vacation days next year.
1) Mark your calendar early
As soon as you get your vacation allotment for 2025, whip out your calendar and start blocking off time. Planning how to use your vacation days now will help you spread them throughout the year, meaning you have regular breaks to rest.
One tip is to look for public holidays or long weekends and sprinkle in extra days off around them – who doesn’t love a four or even five-day weekend? Adding these dates now also keeps your boss from filling your calendar with back-to-back meetings later.
2) Create a vacation bucket list
Jot down all the places you want to visit or things you want to do in 2025, from sipping margaritas on a beach in Bali to skydiving and swimming with sharks in Australia. This list of dreams will help remind you why those vacation days are sacred. Thinking about booking a Mediterranean Cruise is way more inspiring than thinking of it as trying to use up your leftover PTO!
3) Set reminders for quarterly check-ins
At the start of each quarter, ask yourself: How many vacation days have I used, and how many more can I grab before this quarter ends? Can you squeeze in a ski trip by March or a weekend winery escape by June?
Staying on top of your days and spacing them throughout the year makes it easier to avoid the dreaded use them or lose them scramble in November and December.
4) Combine work trips with personal days
If you’re traveling for work, tack on a few personal days to turn that boring conference into an adventure. After all, if your company is already sending you to Chicago, why not stay an extra day to enjoy deep-dish pizza and a river architecture tour?
5) Split vacation days into mini breaks
Not every vacation needs to be a two-week getaway to the Maldives. You can use single days to create luxurious long weekends. That random Friday off in May could turn into a road trip or a glorious day spent binge-watching your favorite shows guilt-free. The little breaks add up to big rejuvenation!
6) Book ahead – no take-backs!
Once you decide on your vacation dates, lock them in with bookings. Whether it’s flights, hotels, or tickets to your favorite concert, putting down some cash makes it harder to back out.
Plus, you’ll avoid price hikes and the excuse of ‘I’ll book it off now and plan something later’. If you don’t book or plan anything, it makes you feel more guilty about saying no if someone asks you to come in on that day.
7) Teamwork makes the dream work
Nobody wants to be the person whose inbox explodes while they’re gone. Coordinate with your team to make sure everything runs smoothly in your absence, as well as make sure your holidays don’t overlap and leave the office empty.
Set up handovers, write a bulletproof out of office email, and trust your colleagues to handle things. The better prepared you are, the easier it is to truly relax. (And no, you don’t need to check your email while you’re on a beach.)
8) Save 2-3 days for emergencies
Life happens, and having a couple of vacation days tucked away is a great insurance policy for last-minute emergencies. Save 2-3 days for unexpected surprises: a last-minute trip, a sick pet, or just a day for yourself when you hit your limit.
However, if you get to November or December and haven’t used those emergency days, make sure you treat yourself to a guilt-free mini holiday. Take a long weekend to prep for the holidays and relax before the usual year-end chaos!
9) Stop planning solo
If you’re on your own and planning solo trips feels overwhelming, rope in friends or family to create shared adventures. Group vacations or weekend getaways are easier to organize because you can share the planning duties and split costs. Plus, having others involved makes it harder to cancel – you don’t want to let your bestie down, do you?
10) Celebrate the joy of saying yes to yourself
Remember: Vacation days are yours. They’re not a favor from your boss or a nice-to-have (no matter what anyone might tell you otherwise) – they’re part of your compensation. So, stop feeling guilty about taking them!
Whether it’s a trip-of-lifetime tropical escape or just a staycation with takeout and Netflix, using your time off is your business, and nobody else’s.
Time off work is essential – make sure you take yours!
Taking time off is a necessity for your wellbeing and your performance at work. When you give yourself a real break, free from emails and deadlines, your brain gets the chance to recharge. This rest directly improves your ability to focus, solve problems, and be creative when you return.
Employees who use all their vacation days report feeling more satisfied with their jobs and less likely to experience burnout. That positivity is contagious – it influences team morale and the workplace environment as a whole.
Not only are happy employees better workers; they’re also more likely to stick around, which is a win for everyone. Taking all your vacation days is one of the simplest ways to invest in yourself and your career.
Hook Agency provides digital marketing services like web design, SEO, and content marketing, designed specifically for small businesses and contractors. They specialize in building high-converting websites and boosting organic traffic to help clients grow their online presence.
