You’re dying for a vacation, but your boss never approves your PTO. How will you ever see the Grand Canyon or swim with dolphins in Bermuda? The answer is quiet vacationing.
If you need a getaway but can’t take time off work, we’re here to help. Learn how you can get some R&R without losing any points with your boss. This is your cheat sheet to quiet vacationing like a pro.
What Is Quiet Vacationing (And Why Do I Need a Cheat Sheet)?
Quiet vacationing is when a remote employee takes time off or goes on a trip without telling their boss or using any paid time off.
With the high cost of living and low salaries, many people feel this is the only way to take their much-needed break. It might seem like a dishonest or sketchy thing to do, but some employees feel they have no other options due to current work expectations.
Why do you need a cheat sheet? Because for certain employees, getting caught on the beach with a pina colada during a Zoom call means termination. This cheat sheet will help you enjoy your vacation without setting off any alarms at work.
1. Be a Model Employee Beforehand
If you’re planning on quiet vacationing soon, the last thing you want is to get on your boss or manager’s bad side. Try to be a model employee in the few weeks leading up to your vacation. This will make your boss less likely to keep a close eye on you or be suspicious when you’re away.
Start work a few minutes early and work a few minutes later each day. Hand in all your work a little early if possible, and make sure everything is well done. Become the kind of employee no one needs to check on.
2. Get Ahead at Work
Before you head on your trip, we recommend getting as much work done as possible. This way, when people expect anything from you while you’re on vacation, you’ll already have it ready to go.
The key here is to finish as much work as possible but don’t let anyone know you finished it yet. Then, when you send something off, it will seem like you’re actively working on things! You might not have a large workload in general, in which case it should be even easier to get ahead and stay ahead while out of town.
3. Consider Your Manager
Everyone’s boss operates differently, and you need to take this into account. Is your boss the type to spontaneously call you? Do they like everyone to have their camera on in Zoom meetings? Do they check to see when everyone logged in and out for the day?
The week or two before your trip, take note of your boss’s habits and prepare yourself for them. This allows you to stay one step ahead of your boss and avoid suspicion.
4. Keep Work Away From Social Media
We recommend doing this anyway, but it’s especially important for quiet vacationers. Unless they’re your literal best friend, don’t add coworkers on social media. You never know who is a tattle tale. Some guileless employees may also unwittingly rat you out by mentioning one of your posts to the wrong person.
This goes without saying, but definitely don’t connect with your boss on socials. And to be extra safe, don’t post anything about your vacation until you’re home again. However, if all your socials are private, you should be good.
5. Be Clever on Zoom
For jobs that require a lot of Zoom calls, the Zoom background options are life-savers. There is an assortment of faux settings you can place yourself in, including your own house if you take a picture before you leave!
You can also just turn off your camera if that’s acceptable at your company. We recommend doing this if you look like you’re on vacation, like you have a stellar tan or something. Whatever you do, don’t let it look like you’re away.
6. Bring Props
We think this trick is only necessary for people who have lots of meetings, a keen manager, and a strict company. But some people say they bring little things from home to make it really seem like they’re at their house on video calls.
For example, someone might bring the mug they use every day. Maybe you bring your calendar and hang it behind you where it usually is. If there’s an item that almost always makes an appearance in your video calls, consider packing it.
7. Know Who You Can Trust
Telling your coworkers about your quiet vacation is risky. Someone could accidentally let the secret slip or may intentionally get you in trouble for their own benefit. However, having someone back at base to keep you in the loop is invaluable.
If you do have a work best friend or confidant, tell them your plan and ask them to cover for you when possible. We only advise you to do this if you know for sure you can trust this individual. If not, fly solo.
8. Be Aware of Time Zones
Time zones can be a real pain when quiet vacationing. Quiet vacationing, depending on your job and company, may not be feasible with a massive time zone shift. If your trip is to Hong Kong, that dramatic time difference may mean you have to be up in the dead of night to join meetings and answer emails.
At that point, the vacation may just not be worth it. But for a few hours of time difference, you can finagle it. Be sure to set any alarms or alerts for your work time zone and not for the time zone you'll be vacationing in.
9. Prioritize WiFi and Cell Service
This is a big one. If you want to pretend you’re at home, you need cell service and reliable WiFi at almost all times. Pay the $20 for in-flight WiFi, hotspot your laptop when necessary, pay extra for international cell service, book a hotel with excellent WiFi or a business center, etc.
If your vacation is short, you may be able to fib and say your WiFi went down for a day or two, sparing any suspicion if you can’t connect for a few hours. But the best tactic is to stay connected everywhere you go.
10. Stay Plugged In
Furthermore, you need to prioritize charging your devices. This might mean upgrading to an airplane seat with an outlet, buying a new power bank or two, packing an extension cord or power strip, and making sure to have all the international adaptors you need.
Whose laptop dies while they’re working at home? That’s a bit of a red flag, so keep everything juiced up.
11. Be Active in the Work Chat
Many companies have a casual or “fun” work chat with everyone. If you are normally active in this chat, it’s smart to stay active while away.
Keep sending your silly memes, updates about your dog, and unsolicited TV show recommendations. Laugh half-heartedly at coworkers’ jokes like you usually do. Keep up the facade and no one will be the wiser. However, if you never participate in the work chat, there’s no need to start now.
12. Schedule Messages
One of the cleverest tricks when quiet vacationing is scheduling your emails and messages to send automatically at certain times. This is a fabulous hack if you’ll be in a dramatically different time zone or have to send many messages throughout the day.
You can write all your messages and emails at once, and then schedule them to be sent throughout the day, creating the illusion that you’re at your desk working diligently.
13. Play Sick
We only recommend pretending you’re sick if you think you won’t be able to effectively keep up the charade. You don’t necessarily need to use your sick days, especially since you work remotely.
But you can let everyone know you feel under the weather so you might not be as on the ball as you normally are. People may even ask less of you or give you grace if they think you feel unwell. Whether or not this is a good move completely depends on your work culture.
Weighing the Risks and Rewards
Before you go on your quiet vacation, consider the ramifications. A relaxed company may not care at all that you’re out of town, but an old-fashioned, uptight one might let you go in a heartbeat.
If you can pull it off, enjoy your vacation. If you know it won’t work, stay home and save your PTO. And if you know your company will never give you enough time off for a trip, maybe it’s time for a new job.
