The Workcation Is Changing -- and Taking One Can Boost Your Business

Christina Stembel had a 70-item to-do list and no time to tackle it. So in 2018, she decided to eliminate all distractions. She’d get an Airbnb cabin in Ojai, Calif., with limited cell service, and spend a weekend alone with her work. She mentioned this plan to another founder she met at an Ernst & Young award ceremony, and the woman asked to come along. Stembel reluctantly agreed. Then the woman invited a friend. And with that, Stembel thought her time away would devolve into a social free-for-all.

But as the three founders settled in at their cabin, Stembel discovered an unexpected benefit. All three women ran companies that create tangible goods and generate millions to: Stembel founded Farmgirl Flowers, which ships sourced bouquets across the Lower 48; she was joined by Ellen Bennett of , maker of premium aprons and chef’s gear, and Chelsea Shukov of a high-end stationery business. At the cabin, the women began swapping experiences and , and soon they scrapped their original plans for the trip. They wouldn’t tackle their to-do lists. Instead, they’d help one another with challenges in their businesses. “I didn’t come back thinking, ” says Stembel. “I came back feeling, ”