We need to talk about the work chat you keep checking on holiday. The emails, the Slacks, the WhatsApp group messages.

According to a recent survey, half of UK workers check work messages while they’re away, and 55% of those do it within minutes of waking up. So chances are, you’re one of them.

It’s not just emails anymore

Ten years ago, “switching off” mostly meant ignoring your inbox. Now, it’s more complicated, with a dozen different channels competing for your attention instead of just one. And more of us are also more than just an employee, whether that’s a side hustle running alongside the day job or a whole business built from scratch.

There are 4.1 million sole traders in the UK today, and the number of people going it alone has grown 5% in the past year. Add in the fact that 46% of UK adults have started some kind of side hustle for extra income, and it’s easy to see why “always on” has stopped being a work-culture problem and started being a way of life. Over a fifth of self-employed people in the UK now work more than 45 hours a week.

Why we can’t leave it alone

This isn’t a discipline problem, and it isn’t really your fault. Getting a notification gives you a small hit of dopamine, and checking it gives your brain a small, unpredictable hit of relief. Is it something good, something urgent, something that can wait? That unpredictability is what makes it so hard to resist. Professionals call it a variable reward loop, the same mechanism that makes slot machines compelling. It’s not that you lack willpower, it’s that the habit is built on a mechanism specifically designed to be hard to walk away from.

The numbers

We’ve created a culture where employees and business owners alike have set aside rest as something you have to fight for rather than something you simply deserve.

What actually helps

Changing your environment is the biggest and easiest way to change a habit. If you’re used to working from your sofa with your phone next to the remote, going somewhere with rest as the intention is the most effective way to tackle the rest you’re craving.

The Wild Root was built around making that as easy as possible. Decision fatigue is real, so we’ve made as many decisions for you as we can. Nobody confiscates your phone at check-in and there’s WiFi if you need it, but there’s also dedicated spaces to build a fire both inside and out, a sauna with a cold outdoor shower for some contrast therapy, an outdoor bath to enjoy in all weathers, and a stretch of countryside that will help you remember the quiet away from the notifications.

It’s less “digital detox” and more removing the friction for a few days that keeps the habit of overworking alive. A stocked kitchen so there’s no reason to leave if you don’t want to, books and board games so there’s something better to reach for than the phone, and a space to fully rest and unwind, whether alone or with your favourite person.

Close enough to book on a whim, far enough to actually rest

You don’t need 2 weeks out the country to reset your habits. Two days is all it takes to start feeling like yourself again. Less than an hour from London means it’s a weekend or mid-week break you can book whenever the always-on feeling has built back up.