By Bob Meyer

Health expert Dr. Peter Hanson, author of Stress for Success, says that stress is the leading cause of 80% of the illnesses he treats. And he advocates weekend hotel breaks as a low-cost escape from the tensions of modern life.

So don’t delay, now’s the time to get away. You can do so by contacting your trade exchange counselor and planning for a few days of well-deserved rest—even right in your home town. Or, depending on your stress level, you may want to plan a full agenda of leisure activities and sightseeing in a far-from-home venue.

The therapeutic need for weekend getaways is backed up by a recent Leisure Time Study Survey. According to the survey of more than 1,000 adults, the work week has expanded to six days, edging on seven.

Saturday and Sunday have become catch-up days for extra work, household tasks and other obligations. Whereas, leisure weekends are becoming extinct.

More than 65% of parents responding to the survey expressed interest in weekend getaways. The greatest barriers to taking advantage of such offers were reportedly family obligations, and other time commitments. Cost was also cited as a deterrent.

But as a member of a trade (barter) exchange, your costs will be covered with trade dollars. And therefore not a big shock to your budget.

Don’t overlook a getaway for your top employee(s). It’s a great perk (and incentive) for those who are performing admirably for you.

For a trade exchange in your area see right-hand column “Top Resources.” USA Barter Companies and Global Barter Companies.

This entry was posted on Sunday, April 8th, 2007 at 8:01 am and is filed under Entrepreneurs & Small Business, Media & Travel. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.