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Dear ABC's,

I opened my business five years ago and haven't had any time off since then, except for a couple of weekends. My wife and I are second generation Italian-Americans and our fifteenth anniversary is coming up. She really wants to spend a romantic month with me in Italy exploring our homeland and meeting relatives. I'd like to do it, too. But how can I leave my business for so long?

Signed,
Anxious Vacationer

Dear Anxious,

Remember when you did your first sleepover at a friend's house when you were little? There was probably a lot of anxiety over the trip because it was a "first." But once you'd been through it a couple of times, you were able to stay longer and enjoy it more.

Usually the best strategy for getting away involves making a couple of trial runs, each progressively longer, until you're sure that everything will run reasonably well while you're gone.

Other bizarre strategies we've seen used over the years include:

• Lock and leave. Just put a sign on the door that says "Gone until August 15th!". This is particularly effective if you never have customers anyway.
• Micromanagement. Master Sure, you're gone, but in these days of high tech, no one is ever really unreachable. Just take along your laptop and arrange for cell phone and mobile internet service while you're in Italy. With some strategic camera placement, your customers and employees will know that they're never unsupervised, and your wife can enjoy shopping and visiting relatives on her own while you hold down the fort from the hotel.
• The Screw Up Relative. So Eric, your brother-in-law, has been making steady progress at the halfway house for the past few months. Your wife thinks he's put that cocaine problem behind him, and he's making good progress on the restitution ordered for the embezzlement from his last job. You can bring him in to supervise your business - after all, he's family!
• Hire Back the guy who sold you the business. Sure, he hasn't been in the store since then, but you haven't changed much of anything.

Okay, joking aside. Here's what we really recommend:

Identify which of your employees can handle the responsibility well. Take a trial run or two and make sure that they can reach you if needed.

It might be a good time to review your insurance coverage but you need that anyway!

Relax, have fun and enjoy your trip, your wife and your family. You'll probably come back refreshed and with insight on your business because you've had a chance to step back from the everyday and consider the whole business. While you're away, figure out what you're doing wrong with your business that has made it impossible to leave your business for the past five years to go on vacation.

We also recommend reading our article entitled "Need A Vacation? Planning Ahead Gets You Out of Town."

Now...Go Make Money!

Kris & Cindy
The ABCs Start up Moms