9 Days Away From Keyboard in Montana

At Intrust IT, we understand that recharging and rejuvenating are super important. In 2023, we made well-being a top priority for our awesome team. We noticed that our employees were stuck in a repetitive routine, so we came up with a solution: the “Nine Days Away From Keyboard” initiative.

Here’s the deal: We require all employees to take a minimum of nine consecutive days off work. During this time, no work-related emails, voicemails, chats or communication channels are allowed. It’s all about unplugging and enjoying some well-deserved time off.

And that’s not all! We’ve also increased our paid time off allowance for every employee. Because we truly care about their well-being and want them to have even more opportunities to take care of themselves.

At Intrust IT, we’re not just about managing services. We’re about making sure employees are happy and enjoy a positive work-life balance. We also find that employees return with renewed energy to serve our clients and customers.  

So what is it like to have nine days away? 

Here’s a report from Eric Fox, an Intrust business development manager, on his experience visiting the beautiful mountain city of Whitefish, Montana.

What did you do on vacation? What were some of the highlights?

Eric Fox: “My nine days away from the keyboard were actually spent in recovery, I had surgery on my neck about a week before we took this trip. I had my vertebrae fused together. The good news is that my family went skiing and I sat at the base of the mountain and watched everybody ski for a week.

“Thankfully for us, my parents were on the trip as well. They were there for support for the family and kids, watching my daughter and son. It ended up being me hanging out with my mom for a week straight, which I don’t really get to do that often. I’ll be back to see what the mountain is all about sometime.”

“Whitefish, Montana, outside of the ski mountain was fantastic as well. The town of Whitefish is this sleepy little mountain town in the wintertime, a catch-all for things in the summertime. There are several lakes running around the town, which sits on a 5-mile wide, 5-mile long lake. Every single season there has something to offer.

“There are no fast food restaurants and there are no big resorts, and while you can find them if you really want to look for them, it’s much more of a local, small shop type of town. Things move slower, things are simpler. It just was a really, really great time.”

Did you have a favorite food while you were traveling?

“We were there with another group of our friends that I’ve known my whole life. We overlapped our vacations by two or three days, and on Friday we lined up a trip to a sushi restaurant where my friends actually knew the owner.

“They gave us the red carpet treatment when we got there. The dishes kept coming all night long and it was fantastic.”

Did the 9 Days Away From Keyboard initiative make a difference?

“I honestly think that it gives you the ability to truly mentally check out from work. I can certainly say that being in a sales role at the company, your work doesn’t normally stop, you have to keep the ball moving forward.

“Without the initiative, where leadership is really telling you to leave the computer at home and not work, you can fall into the bad habits of ‘Well, my email is on my phone, so I might as well check it.’”

How do you feel about coming back to work after the break?

“That was the beauty of the initiative, even once you get back, leadership doesn’t want you busy the first day. They understand that you were away for nine days and that you didn’t check anything. They give you time to climb out of the hole, get back on top of things, make sure you know where your workload is at.

“It really doesn’t matter what department you’re in, that’s the language I’ve heard. It’s ‘Take the nine days, recharge your batteries, refresh. The work will be here when you get back and when you do get back, ease into it.’”

Enjoy Your Nine Days Away to the Fullest

At Intrust IT, we know that taking an extended, uninterrupted break is a must for both our employees and the company’s success, and we can’t wait to see where this new initiative takes us. 

Stay posted for more updates on the 9 Days Away From Keyboard initiative, and check out another one of our team member’s journeys to Portugal for his nine days.

Would you like to join our team of employee-owners and have a nine-day break built into your job description? Check out our open positions.