Why Aren't Americans Using All Of Our Vacation Days?

I recently came across article after article after article on the fact that last year over half of all American workers did not use all of our vacation days.  

So the real question is why in the h-e-double hockey sticks would you want to work for free???

Now I am in the jealousy camp saying, "Oooh look at my European and Australian pals that get a month to go on holiday".  While I would be lucky if I could get 5 days off in a row..(I mean is the place really gonna fall apart without me?)

But back to the real issue at hand, is it that we are so dedicated and focused on our jobs that taking a vacation gets pushed to the back burner?  Or are we so afraid of possible losing our jobs if we take time off?  Or have our jobs become such a major part of our life that we wouldn't know what to do with time off?  

Focusing too much on the the answers to any of these questions is just sad..sad..sad.  We Americans are known for our hard work, perseverance, rising above, and overcoming challenges.  But these together-everyone-achieves-more corporate wranglings can be to the detriment of the individual.  

We are stressed out, overworked, and so complacently used to our work life that we can barely get our heads above water to get that break that we desperately need. (no staycations don't count y'all)  We've got so much built up tension we could pop off at any moment.  Today's news stories (which I had to stop watching) is just chock full of people blowing their tops.  

While I know simply taking a vacation does not even begin to address all of the challenges that we face.  But wouldn't taking a break give us a fresh perspective to come up with solutions???

So I've started Travel More Work Less:  a movement for women (and men if we let them come) to take action on real strategies to add more travel to our lives taking a break from the routine and stresses of life.  We women are more likely to suffer from heart disease by going long periods of time without taking a real rest.  And if Mama ain't happy, ain't nobody happy....

Kanisa "Vacation Days" Baker