Are you a work Martyr?

One day recently I was having a conversation with two individuals. The topic was vacation. They were discussing the idea of taking a week or 2 weeks off down the road. Then they began to discuss people whom they felt "never" took personal time. Once engaged I chimed in the only way I could - "Well, I've never taken a week off either. I actually prefer extended weekends."

You thought I would have committed treason. Certainly the general consensus was "what's wrong with you?" So, is something wrong with me?? I began to think that I'm not sure if I would enjoy a week off from work. I'd rather have 2 extended weekends in 30 days.

Am I a work martyr? Are you? I would be considered an older, barely there Millennial. Being raised by older parents I've come to admit that I can have rather "old school" perspectives on things. It seems as though there is talk that millennials are going to change the vacation industry.

Project: Time Off is an organization whose mission is to change the way we view work and our well deserved time off. Their new report ""The Work Martyr's Cautionary Tale: How the Millennial Experience Will Define America's Vacation Culture" sheds light on some changing attitudes about employee time off and vacation.

Project: Time Off defines a work Martyr as . . . . an employee

who skip vacation to show complete dedication to the job, are worried they'll be seen as replaceable, feel guilty for using time off and believe they alone can do the job.

Findings: . . . .

• Compared to Baby Boomers and More than four in 10 (43%) of work martyrs are Millennials compared to 29% of all workers.

• Millennials are at least twice as likely to find taking time off difficult because they don't want to lose consideration for a raise or promotion, don't want others to think they are replaceable and want to show complete dedication, among other reasons.

• 28% of Millennials are in management roles already

• (47%) of Millennial managers said that company pressure prevents them from approving time off requests for their direct reports, compared to 34% of Generation X and 37% of Boomers who feel the same.

• Almost half (48%) of Millennials think it's a good thing to be seen as a work martyr by their boss, far outpacing the average (39%) and well ahead of the Boomer generation (32%).

The report also acknowledges the impact of the recession, student debt, and the role of technology (always connected lifestyle).

While I don't think I am a Work Martyr, I certainly acknowledge the factors that impact my perspectives. Are you a Work Martyr???