I’ve been a full-time hairstylist for 13 years. Throughout my career, I’ve learned the importance of taking time off to just be. Being a stylist is a very physical and mental job. Therefore, if you are not giving your body the proper care it needs, that’s when burnout starts creeping in. I know this because I have experienced it before, one too many times. I made a vow to myself to prioritize time to rest so I’m able to show up for myself and my family, friends, and clients as best as I possibly can. I therefore started implementing long periods of time off into my schedule to recover and take care of myself or just simply travel for a longer period of time.

My salon schedule usually consists of 11-hour days, four days a week. I give every bit of energy I have to my clients through conversation and the services they choose to get done. Never have I been one to give just half of myself; when I show up, I’m fully present for you. I love every bit of my work, but typically towards the end of the year, I’m ready to get away and take a timeout.

An analogy I like to use is that a car that keeps running will eventually run out of gas, and the more miles you put on it, the more maintenance you’ll need to have done on it. However, if you maintain it properly and take care of it well, the car will last much longer.

That’s what my month-long sabbaticals are for

I started this journey a few years after building a solid clientele. During the time of building it, I had to spend a lot of time behind the chair. I couldn’t really enjoy life like I wanted to because I was constantly trying to hustle to sustain my life and create quality long-lasting relationships with my clients, coming in on my days off and taking away from my rest to keep them coming back to see me. I realized quickly how unsustainable that was.

After what almost felt like an eternity building my business, I was ready to get my life in order and truly start living and creating the life I knew I could live. One of my biggest goals was to travel—not being confined to the borders of the United States, but to travel deep and as far away as possible to immerse myself in new experiences unlike any I’d ever experienced before. However, I knew that would require me to take more time away from work to go seek out the world, which is why a month made sense for me realistically.

I’ve had the privilege of traveling to some beautiful international destinations, including Zanzibar, Tanzania, all around Southeast Asia, Europe, and the Caribbean, just to name a few. I look back on these memories, and they remind me why I work hard. These experiences have given me a greater understanding of this world and brought me closer to humanity. Anything is possible, and the journey you choose is just waiting to be found. All it takes is saying yes to the adventure, figuring out when you want to seek it out, and creating a plan.

Here’s exactly how I plan for my time away

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I prepare my Itinerary Way in Advance

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I like to give myself at least six months to do my research into where I’d like to go — knowing it will usually be around the New Year —, buy my plane ticket(s), and get a rough itinerary down. This means I typically start planning for a January trip around July of the year before.

When mapping out the trip, I like to focus first on things like the exchange rate to really get an idea of how much money my dollar is worth in the specific country (or countries) to get a clearer idea of how far my dollar will stretch and how much I’ll really need on my hiatus. Then I will look at the weather during the season when I intend to travel — because, as someone who lives in Seattle, who wants to be stuck in a downpour the whole time during vacation?

As soon as I know my exact dates, I log them into the Hopper app. I personally love this app because when you put in your travel dates, they will predict the cheapest dates to travel and give you a blueprint for the cheapest season to travel at the lowest prices for plane tickets, hotels, and transportation with 95% accuracy, analyzing thousands of prices and predicting when prices will rise. If it’s a solid deal, they will tell you to book now. If not, it will recommend watching the flight and waiting until you get the best rate to purchase the ticket. Or, if yo wait too long to purchase, it will alert you that ticket costs are starting to rise and may not come down for a while. Again, the beauty of planning ahead is that you have the flexibility of waiting for the right price.

I go away during the slow periods of my business and work extra hard when times are busy

Seasonality is a big part of my business, and it stays fairly consistent year to year. Spring is when everyone wants to start chopping their hair and brightening things up for summer; fall is the transition into deeper, richer tones and maintaining length; and holiday seasons are usually for the big transformations for the New Year or the casual touch-ups. Nonetheless, these tend to be my busy periods; the hours are predictable, and I can map out my schedule and maximize the amount of money I make to save for my month-long trip. I tend to open my calendar on my days off to get more hours and $$$ rolling in during those times. I do this knowing that my sabbatical is on the horizon and it will likely will take place in a relatively slower period, during January, as clients have already come in right before the holidays, and won’t need maintenance for a while, so I won’t be bringing in any income while I’m away. This way, I can budget accordingly because I’ve planned accordingly and made the money I need to make to accomplish my financial goals and savings!

I’m strategic about my budget and schedule before and after my trip

I typically try to pay rent(s) and all my bills and business expenses ahead of time, for the following month, with money set aside for when I come back for living expenses aside from savings. I book flights and accommodations before the trip; this way, I’m focusing on putting money aside purely for leisure and the following expenses:

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• Travel insurance: (this isn’t a must, but I always get it when going international).
• Meals : per day and extra food expenses (drinks, snacks, etc.).
• Transportation : costs if going to a place that isn’t walkable and requires lots of transportation like trains, taxis, or ferries.
• Entertainment and extras: (activities, admission fees, souvenirs, extra cash on hand per day, etc.).
• Extra lodging expenses: Tips for staff, etc.

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Once you crunch all of these numbers, this will give you a good idea of how much money you need to save. I always like to save more than I budget and take an emergency travel CC just in case  something unexpected happens when I’m traveling.

Because I pay in advance and budget and save for my expenses ahead of time, I’m able to give myself a buffer when returning in order to get readjusted (particularly if crossing time zones) and not have to rush back to work. I book my clients ahead of time, around my travels, and typically know a rough estimate of what I’m going to make when I get back to work.

One little thing I do to save money before my trip is saving my tips — I don’t touch them at all. I put them in a separate savings account labeled “tips,” and watch it grow. This is my rainy-day emergency fund money typically, but a portion sometimes helps pay for my travels.

Finally, I cut back on my spending, really tailoring my finances to my needs rather than my wants. I pack a lunch every day for work, and do prep every week to keep myself on track. Mindless spending on Uber Eats and coffee adds up and takes away from my travel money, so I get really strict with my budgeting when travel is on the horizon. When I think this way, I just somehow reel it in.

All in all, if there’s a will, there’s a way to accomplish anything you set your mind to — with proper planning and saving, you can make your travel dreams come true. If I can do it, so can you!

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