It’s important to encourage your employees to take time off. Make it clear to them that this is a business issue — not just a personal one. Use a few minutes in a team meeting to share some of the research on the benefits of vacation, such as higher productivity and less stress. Then keep track of how many vacation days employees have taken, and periodically update the team so that they know this issue matters to you. When people do take time off, tell them that you don’t want them checking email or voicemail, and that you’ll keep a list of things that come up for when they’re back. And if someone on your team isn’t taking their vacation time, bring it up during their next development discussion. Most important of all, be a good role model: Take full, disconnected vacations so that your team will, too.
Adapted from "How to Get Your Team to Use Their Vacation Time," by Liane Davey
