What is the most illogical thing you've done to protect your Vegas trips?

Ok, I am not aggressively job hunting, but am open to making a move for the right fit.

What is embarrassing is that, when I get close to "Vegas time," I tend to slow down on looking for interesting opportunities, thinking, "I'll start hunting again AFTER Vegas," as I'd feel uncomfortable asking for time off during my first few months on a job.

I also can take some unpaid leave on my current job to supplement vacation time, and I'm very leery of a job that is less generous on time off (ok, Vegas time off)...paid or unpaid.

What is the most illogical thing YOU do to protect an upcoming Vegas trip or your Vegas timelines?

 

I don't consider it illogical, but one reason I love my current job is two clients in the Las Vegas area and a travel department that is cool. I'm able, in many cases, to extend business trips a day or so if I pick up the extra $$$$$. Last month for a conference I was able to get portions of TWO weekends!

As far as illogical, and I don't really consider this illogical at all, a few days in advance of a long-anticipated LV trip I'll often times start popping Vitamin C and zinc supplements to (hopefully) lessen my chance of getting a common cold right in the middle of my stay. That has happened to me a few times over the years and it TOTALLY SUCKS! I don't know any other way of putting it! A co-worker of mine will often wear a surgical mask on the outbound flight (not particularly LV but anywhere) for just this reason, but I don't go that far.

 

I wouldn't call that illogical either. Anytime a recruiter has contacted me and I've known about an upcoming vacation, I let them know I'll be unavailable for that time.

Cautiously, nothing new gets done the 2 weeks leading to the vacation for me. I'll fix minor bugs in code and layout stuff, but no major server / infrastructure changes; no new code deploys, etc... Anything that would cause me to run back to the room and get a laptop and have to sit and fix for hours. It has happened in the past to me so just, no.

I am saving a new feature I need to build for the flight there and back to try to distract me on the flights. Blast some music and get some work done should make the time pass fairly quickly.

 

Add "unseemly" and you will get more interesting replies.

 

I *almost* considered adding that to the meat of my text, just to make you grin, but I realized just how south this string could go.

Wanker already expanded my vocabulary this week...Lord only knows what type of responses "unseemly" might drudge up!

 

I always go to vegas twice between jobs. I go through a fair amount of jobs, they usually last me anywhere from 3-5 years or so. Sort of like marriages should.

I will go soon after my last day and will drag my feet to look for work until after i go again a few months later. So that means I cant even look for work now until the end of july.

 

A friend tried to headhunt me to go work at the company he is employed at. Pay would have been significantly higher. I turned it down because I wasn't ready to leave my current job, and one of the reasons is the ability to attend conferences in Las Vegas with flight, hotel and meals all paid for. Next to free trips to Vegas? Yes please. Leave that job? No way!

 

The thing I do most that affects my "real life" as opposed to Vegas is the amount of hardship (first world hardship, of course) I put myself through before trips from a saving money standpoint.

I'm what I like to call "aggressively middle-class", I make decent money but live in SF where the cost of living is every penny you have. Starting a couple months out from a trip I start the deep saving for the trip; no going out on weekends, cutting back on food/bev, no Amazon spending, etc. It's easy enough for me since I'm single and have relatively low debt but it does make for a pretty spartan existence for a couple months before a trip

All for that 5 days in Happy Land...

 

Same problem here I make good money but I could make more elsewhere. No one else can touch the benefits I get here though - my own office; perfect hours for me (530am to 130pm), full benefits, etc... Having your own office and not sitting in a cube or open office is worth it's weight in gold. So much quieter...