We spend each and every day helping to make our clients’ travel dreams come true. But what about our personal travel dreams?

We have very stressful and time-consuming jobs. When I began selling travel, there was no email and the Internet was still in its infancy. I worked in an office from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m., and my clients either stopped by or called me on the phone during business hours to talk about planning their vacations.

Through the years—in particular, the past five—competition in our field has exploded in tandem with the rise in the use of the Internet and social media, creating the need to be available to our clients on a 24/7 basis.

For these reasons alone, we sometimes need to take a break from it all—to get away from the emails, phone calls, problems and concerns coming from our clients.

I try to take a real vacation once a year. This means I don’t set up any hotel site visits, I don’t take notes and I try not to check emails as incessantly.

To do so, however, takes careful planning, and having a good backup in place is essential. I found an agent who joined Travel Experts about the same time I did, and we agreed to cover for each other while traveling. We don’t charge one another for our time or split commission—instead, our arrangement functions more like a co-op where we keep our own commissions resulting from any sales.

We always check with each other before we book a trip so our vacations don’t overlap. Other agents I know hire advisors who charge for their time, either on an hourly or a per-call basis. Host agencies or agency managers are also a valuable source for finding vacation coverage.

Before I depart, I clear my calendar, checking to make sure all final payments are taken care of in advance, and that email requests to hotels are completed well in advance of my clients stays. I review proposals I’ve sent to clients and follow up to see if they’re ready to book. Often this prompts them to make that deposit before I leave.

I also make a list of clients who will be traveling while I am gone. I send those bookings to the agent covering for me just in case an issue arises and they need help.

Lastly, I always put a clear out-of-office message on both my email and voicemail, letting clients know I am unavailable but that there is another agent who will help in an emergency or handle something that can’t wait.

Advance planning makes it possible to break away, enjoy time with loved ones and spend time clearing the mind. Alleviating stress and achieving our own travel dreams make us 100 percent mentally available to be there for our clients when we return.