A deceptively wise young man in Wayfarer shades once reminded us how quickly life goes. “If you don’t stop and look around once in a while,” Ferris Bueller says, “you could miss it.”
While that teenage hooky-player extraordinaire might not be the best role model, you’ve got to admit: He has a point. If our lives are just a loop of waking up, working, eating and sleeping, we run the risk of suffering burnout. Think of the opportunities we’d miss: to laugh with a loved one, watch the painted sky of a sunset or just appreciate that we’re here today, breathing in and out—and what a gift that is.
Of course, we want to work hard and work well, but there’s the irony. Science shows that taking regular breaks actually makes us more productive and can prevent burnout. That’s because when we focus, our prefrontal cortex isn’t only thinking logically; it’s working hard to resist distractions, according to research published in the Journal of Occupational Health Psychology. Hard concentration takes energy—energy that gets depleted with each passing minute. The study assures us that we all need to recharge and replenish our batteries after that kind of exertion, and even very short breaks may do the trick: “For this reason, while it may seem counterintuitive, taking regular breaks can actually help you be more productive than working without stopping.”
In other words, it’s a good idea to Opt Outside sometimes—even if it means skipping work.
More bosses should recognize the importance of that fact, argues neuroscientist Dr. Tara Swart. Her studies have found that showing up to work actually costs businesses around 2.5 times as much as an employee not showing up at all because burnt-out employees may have their butts in the chair but their brains elsewhere. They need a break—and research says one of the best breaks to take is to get moving outdoors.
We asked our REI Member, partner and staff community how they’ve done just that—taken breaks to be outside—either with or without permission from their higher-ups. Some asked their manager for a little time off. Others suddenly (suspiciously) caught a nasty bug or discovered that a distant relative had just kicked the bucket. One temporarily retires every few years. But they all have one thing in common: They recognize that sometimes a not-sick day is just what the doctor ordered.
Read on for their best hooky anecdotes, glean lessons from their well-thought-out rationales for ghosting work for a day and get tips on how you can follow suit. And share your own stories about Ferris Bueller–ing in the comments below.
Author’s note: Some names have been omitted or changed to protect the identity of these well-intentioned hooky-players.
Life: Don’t Miss It
Sometimes nature heals. Sometimes it brings people together. Always, it’s a source of wonder worth stopping (and maybe skipping work) to enjoy.
Bob Porter: “Looks like you’ve been missing a lot of work lately.”
Peter Gibbons: “I wouldn’t say I’ve been missing it, Bob.”
– Office Space (1999)
Serenity now
“Instead of driving to class, I detoured and drove to the Angeles National Forest for a much-needed hike. It always amazes me how being outside in the stillness of nature makes everything else seem so small. I sat near a small waterfall and meditated. All my problems dissolved, and all I felt was serenity and gratitude for life and its blessings. I drove back feeling refreshed and determined to keep going, allowing nothing and no one to bring me down.”
– Kayla D., Outdoor Afro ambassador. REI Member since 2024.
In the name of love
“Years ago, when I was super early in my career, I called in sick to work to go on a third date with my now partner. Like a lot of folks these days, I met Joe through a dating app, and we immediately hit it off. We’d had a few really great dates but hadn’t gone on a true outdoor adventure together yet. When he texted me late on a Wednesday to see if I wanted to skip work to go hike Pyramid Peak (one of our local Colorado 14ers) during peak fall foliage the next day, I did not hesitate. I texted my then boss that I was feeling under the weather, scrambled to reorganize my meeting calendar and called in sick. I remember feeling so scared and guilty at the time, but the moment my shoes hit the trail, I knew it was the right choice. It truly was one of the most amazing, perfect, blue-sky days in the mountains ever. It was also the day where I realized Joe was someone I wanted to spend a long, long time with.”
– Emily Banks, North American brand communications at On. REI Member since 2016.
Rime and reason
“One January weekday, I woke up early to let the dog outside and was startled by the scene in the backyard: The air was foggy and mysterious, and everything was covered in crystal needles of rime ice. It had so far been a somewhat disappointing winter, weather wise (nothing unnerves a Minnesotan like a January without fresh, heavy snowfall) and the glint off the rime-coated trees was the first magical thing I’d seen in the new year. I immediately knew I needed to be surrounded by it, so I fired a quick message off to my boss (“I’ll be a little late today”) and drove to the nearest state park, about 35 minutes away. I strapped on my Microspikes and crunched into the woods, enveloped in cold fog and immersed in this fascinating, slightly unsettling landscape. The tall trees were completely washed with white quills of ice, like they’d become cactus. The only way I can describe the scene (and this is a very nerdy description) is that it looked like Narnia before Aslan. I walked around the park completely alone, looking up the whole time. It lasted about two hours before the sun broke through the clouds, burned off the fog and melted the rime. I went into work a little later, feeling somewhat touched by magic. I haven’t seen anything like that again so far, and I’m glad I took the chance to be curious, get a closer look and officially welcome winter in.”
– Ever Meister, REI Co-op program manager and editor for Uncommon Path and Expert Advice. REI Member since 2012.
Money savvy
“I skipped school for a week while we traveled around New Zealand. One day, we took a water taxi and did a day walk to a beach at a national park. We collected lots of sand dollars on the beach—about a million dollars’ worth!—and made little farms for them. We were careful not to hurt them. I like school, but on the hike, I saw the beauty of nature. And I learned what a sand dollar was!
– Charlie S., age 8, northern Colorado. Child of an REI Member (i.e. the author) since 2011.
Play hooky … and land your dream job?
“Oddly, I got my current job playing hooky from my previous job. I was a bartender and cook, but I always wanted to work at Patagonia. After college, I started paddling outrigger canoes with a local team. I ditched a bartending gig one night to go paddle. That night, I sat next to a former Patagonia employee. We got to talking, and he asked me where I work. I told him but followed up that I’d been trying to get a job at Patagonia. He giggled and told me he knew a manager whose Achilles’ heel was fish tacos and beer. Later that week, I found myself having lunch with my new teammate and future boss. Several fish tacos and Anchor Steams later, I had myself a job interview. I’ve been at Patagonia for 14 years now, and I still paddle outrigger canoes with the same team.”
– Corey Simpson; communications manager, product and sport community for Patagonia. REI Member for longer than he can remember.
Four Good Reasons to Opt Outside
The results are in: Getting away from a desk to get into the wild pays dividends for our physical and psychological well-being. In fact, just a few minutes in nature can revive a tuckered-out brain. So, if you want to be a better worker, try spending time away from your job—ideally outdoors.
“The elders were wise. They knew that man’s heart, away from nature, becomes hard; they knew that lack of respect for growing, living things, soon led to lack of respect for humans, too.”
– Chief Luther Standing Bear, Lakota Sioux
Leave the office to benefit the office
“Never one who liked the interplay of cars and bikes, I’d go to the nearest bike path and just start cruising. Sometimes hard, sometimes slow, but always the steady rhythm of the wheels turning. My mind would relax, answers to dilemmas would come to me, and I’d realize that I was smiling without even being aware of it.”
– Joan Denizot, founder of ZIZE Bikes. REI Member since 2017.
Team-building exercise
“On more than one occasion I’ve given my team permission to log off early/not log on at all. For instance,
we’ll go on a hike together in the morning, we’ll get lunch and then we’ll end this ‘work’ day early. Is it hooky or is it team building? You decide.”
– Heather Young, REI senior manager of Product Copy and Copy Editing. REI Member since 2005.
Getting outside is a walk in the park
“I resolved I would take all large, virtual group meetings (ones where my actual face on the screen wasn’t necessary) outside, walking. I would dial into the meeting and force myself out the door, away from the laptop screen. I treated the call like a podcast or audiobook and often found that I would pay more attention listening to what people were saying than I did zoning out staring at all the tiles on the screen. It’s incredible what time outside can do, even when you’re still technically working. The cool marine air, the chirp and trills of birds, the crunching of leaves and twigs underfoot: I always felt more refreshed after these meeting walks. I looked forward to meetings when I knew I would be able to get outside. Of course, I know instinctively about the healing power of nature, but hectic schedules often get in the way and work/life consumes us. But it’s easy if you start small: What’s one thing you can do now within your busy schedule to get outside? Can you block out time in your day for the outdoors?”
– Phuong Le, managing editor of the REI Co-op publications Uncommon Path and Expert Advice. REI Member since 1996.
Stepping back, gracefully
“When I was younger, I’d fake being sick during times I didn’t feel safe. What I realized was, as long as you are living in your truth, you’re not going to please everybody—and that’s OK. [Now], if I need to take a step back from work, I don’t play hooky. I’m very honest with what I need from my team and am usually granted the opportunity to take a step back to reflect, whether that be outdoors or in therapy. It’s important for me to feel grounded when stepping out into this big planet we call home.”
– Samiere, Outdoor Afro ambassador. REI Member since 2023.
Tips for Playing Hoo—er, Opting Outside
Convinced it’s time for a little you time? Here are some tried-and-true ways to get the A-OK from the corner office.
“If people sat outside and looked at the stars each night, I’ll bet they’d live a lot differently.”
– Calvin and Hobbes (1992)
Tell the boss to take a hike
“When I want to take a day off from slinging socks and have a personal day in nature, I either fake an illness, claim my fifth or sixth grandparent has died—again—or just simply leave and hope the boss, the founder, doesn’t find out. I hear she can be a real hard-ass.”
– Brittany Coleman, founder and CEO of ToughCutie. REI Member since 2020.
Prepare financially
“Every 3.5 years, I take a break from whatever job I’m working and take a six-month sabbatical. I do this because, at a large scale, balancing focus between work goals and life goals is important. For me, that means thinking of big things I would like to do in life and making them happen. It costs money to do this, so I have to be prepared and save money well in advance for the time away from work, but that’s just more motivation to have very dialed finances. It’s risky, but when you think about it, nothing is guaranteed. I want to maximize life now. If I’m alive at 70, I’ll live it up then too—I can bird-watch or knit a hat—but there are just some things that I have to get in now if I want to do them. And I do want to do them.”
– William Q., Boulder, Colorado. REI Member since 2004.
Use time zones to your advantage
“This past April, we took off to Kentucky to explore the Red River Gorge, which, as a climber, is a huge destination spot. We still worked during the weekdays, but the pro of working from Kentucky was the time change (+2 hours from my office), so we could get early outdoor climbing sessions in and not have to log into work until 11am, which allowed us to feel like we were taking advantage of our time there. I don’t want to accommodate my life to my career. Yes, I will make sacrifices from time to time, but I want to look back on life and know I spent it to the best of my own likings. So long as I do my work, show up and do my best, I can do that from anywhere. A life spent outside brings me so much more fulfillment than any paycheck ever could.”
– Devin A., Denver, Colorado. REI Member since 2011.
Reshuffle the hustle in the name of mental health
“For me, it’s important to exercise when there is sunlight to combat my seasonal depression and get much-needed vitamin D. If you are reliant on weather conditions in your area, I recommend trying to plan your work schedule around that. Find out when you are most productive in your workday and when you feel energy lacking. That’s a good time to play hooky. You may even get more done in less time.”
– Alexa L., global PR director for Xero Shoes.
Remember that the world can wait
“Surfing conditions are unpredictable, especially in the part of California where I live, where the wind plays a huge role. When the waves and conditions are good, I make it a point to get in the water, even if it’s a Monday at 10am. My three boys love surfing too, so it’s especially important for me to make time to surf with them. Surfing reminds me that people can wait a couple of hours to hear back from me, even if they are on a deadline. One practical tip is that I always share my location with my kids, husband and business partners. This way, if they see I’m near the Pacific Ocean, they know it might be a couple of hours before they hear back from me.”
– Coley G., Ventura, California. REI Member since 2019.
