How a Norway 28-year-old prepares for required 3-week summer vacation – CNBC

The summer travel season is in full swing, and you might be planning to set up your own “out of office” message soon.But in the U.S., which has a culture of overworking and zero national laws that guarantee paid vacation time, people have a hard time taking the days off they’re given. The average American leaves 9½ vacation days on the table each year, and when they do take time off, a majority say they’re unable to stop working.The temptation to check work messages on vacation is even difficult for Lene Vindenes, 28, who lives in Oslo, Norway, and works as a social media manager. Like many European workers, she’s entitled to a generous amount of paid leave by law.Her company guarantees 25 paid vacation days per year, and she’s required to take three weeks of vacation during the summer between June and August. She once took off for four weeks to travel around Europe.She admits it’s “really hard” to not check email when she’s off the clock, and coming back from weeks away is “always overwhelming.”Here are her four top tips for how she prepares to be OOO.1. Ask your clients what they need from youJust as you’d let
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