If you own your own business, you are no stranger to the endless list of demands on you as you work to achieve your dreams. The very idea of taking a vacation where you are not tethered to your phone or laptop leaves you with a knot in the pit of your stomach. How will everything get done? What disasters will inevitably befall the company while you are gone, causing its demise? What will you have to clean up and apologize for when you get back from your self-indulgent vacation?

You are not alone in this train of thought—a surprising 53 percent of business owners admitted to taking an annual vacation, meaning that the other 57 percent of owners remained at home, working tirelessly.

Unfortunately, all of this burning the midnight oil does come with consequences. A healthy balance between work and play is essential for emotional, social and physical well being. Taking that vacation is not impossible, but there are some things that should be done to anticipate for anything that might happen in your absence. Here are some things to do to prepare you–and your business–for vacation time:

Prepare For Your Absence In Advance

The key to making sure that things go smoothly when you are away is to tell anyone that might be affected by your absence in advance. Call employees in and personally alert them to your vacation plans, giving them contact information to use if they are unable to deal with issues. Communicate with customers and clients who may have orders that are due during your downtime to let them know that you may not be personally able to attend to their needs, but that someone else will. Assure them that all requests not completed in your absence will be followed up on when you return. Do not schedule any big meetings, marketing and promotion events, or product launches until after you return; this will minimize stress for everyone who may be involved in these big business changes.

Bring a “must do” list and an emergency contact list with you, if necessary, to allow you to have communication with the head office, but remember–this is just in case of emergency, nothing else.

Train Your Staff To Handle Your Absence Appropriately

Create a list of potential emergency situations and their possible resolutions for your employees, and have a meeting to make sure that everyone will follow the protocol if they experience these issues in your absence. Employees should know what to do or who to call if:

• There are internet or power issues
• There are issues with the physical office space
• Who to contact if they need production issues addressed
• What to do in case of fire, flood, or severe weather issues
• How to follow up with customer dissatisfaction issues

Put someone in charge of taking detailed notes on business happenings while you are away, and have them maintain a regular point of contact with you if necessary to fill you in on daily and newsworthy events. You won’t want a pile of post-it notes and angry emails to deal with upon your return, so make sure that your loyal employees are taking a vested interest in the day to day operations.

Set Vacation Boundaries For Yourself

Set times for work and for play while on vacation. You won’t want to get sucked into a six-hour disagreement with a manufacturer over a contract when the rest of your family is relaxing on the beach, tropical drinks in hand. Tell your employees that you are available for a short time each day, and stick to those hours, telling everyone back home that you prioritize family as well. For your own health and sanity, take frequent breaks and work on rest, relaxation and play. Taking time off regularly for self-care will recharge your batteries and actually make you more productive upon your return back to work.

While running a business is rewarding and challenging, there are times when you simply need to slow down and unplug from everything that drives you. Taking the time to automate some of your systems, find key employees who can pick up the slack, and devote time to your family relationships will create a support system that allows you to strike more balance, and more success, in life.