Whether you love or loathe the idea, it’s time for your company retreat. What can you do if you are a working parent? You have some logistics to analyze.
Preparing for a company retreat as a parent involves considering your children’s ages and your available resources. You may or may not have reliable helpers in your network, and you might have to coordinate lodging and transportation with your employer. Here are nine things you should know as you pack your bags.
1. Evaluate Your Support Network
If you are in a committed relationship, and your partner typically stays home with the kiddos, you have little to do outside of packing your bags. However, if you both work — even if you share child care responsibility while telecommuting — you need to make arrangements for the little ones. The same goes if you are a single parent.
Some companies welcome their employees’ significant others and little ones. If yours does, see if your partner can work remotely to help with child care duties. If you’re a single parent who can’t take the kids, investigate into a night-nanny service if your children are old enough to mind themselves during the day with occasional check-ins from friends or relatives. If your kiddos are younger, you may have to find someone you can trust to care for them for a week.
2. Communicate With Your Employer About Accommodations
If you have your little ones in tow, communicate with your employer regarding accommodations. Many glamping retreats offer tents in various sizes, including those that sleep up to five people. If you must bring a pop-up with you and don’t own one, your employer might suggest affordable alternatives.
If staying in a hotel, phone ahead to let them know you have children. Some resorts offer welcome packs for kids and may provide on-site day care and activities for entertaining the littles while you work.
3. Take Charge of a Child-Friendly Event
Chances are, your organization seeks volunteers to spearhead different activities on your retreat. Sign up to lead a child-friendly event — or make it so with your ingenuity. For example, you could put together a beach or woodland volleyball match that includes people of all ages.
Meal-planning is another activity you might enjoy leading. That way, you can make sure your little ones won’t whine about eating their zucchini after you cleverly disguise it in a muffin.
4. Prepare Provisions
Even if your company says, “all expenses included,” don’t expect them to budget for snacks and sundries for your children. Prepare your kids’ favorite treats to take along, and let them help select and prepare these — that way, they can’t complain about the selection.
You also want to ensure they have plenty to keep them entertained. If your company plans on going off the grid, take a selection of non-electronic toys for their playtime pleasure. If you’re handling things solo and you have Wi-Fi access, it’s okay to let their devices babysit within reason.
5. Get Your Vehicle Serviced
Having your car break down on route to or from your destination is never fun, but it’s more problematic with the gang in tow. Take your vehicle in for service before departure and let the mechanic know the reason for your visit. If they identify necessary repairs, ask for a detailed price breakdown, and hop online to make sure the charges seem fair and reasonable.
6. Scout the Area Online
What if you run out of diapers in the middle of the night? Will you know the location of the nearest convenience store? Before you depart, scout the area online and note necessary services like grocery and drug stores. If you have the means, you can also investigate children’s day camps in the region to occupy your kids while you mingle with corporate.
7. Pack Two Nights in Advance
Why do you want to pack two nights in advance? The gap between the time you fill your suitcase and depart for your journey gives you time to remember often-overlooked items like toothbrushes and contact cases. It also gives your children time to do the same. If you and your kiddos need any prescription medications such as asthma inhalers, ask your doctor for a week’s travel fill.
8. Meditate on Your Purpose
Maybe this suggestion sounds cheesy, but it works. Your organization should clue you in on the purpose of their retreat, but ask yourself what you hope to get out of it. Each morning, reaffirm this goal in your mind, perhaps by repeating a mantra. When you focus your mindset on the desired result, you develop the courage not to let minor inconveniences — like a child’s lost toy — steal your overall productive mojo.
Prepare Yourself and Your Family for Your Next Company Retreat
As a parent, you might find it daunting to prepare for a company retreat. However, by following the tips above, you can enjoy your getaway and make it productive.
About the Author:
Oscar Collins is the managing editor at Modded. He writes about cars, fitness, the outdoors and more. Follow @TModded on Twitter for more articles from the Modded team.
