The first step to planning a vacation is to intentionally set aside time to vacate from your normal routine using your planned time off. It pains me when I hear about folks forfeiting any portion of their employee vacation benefits.  Over half of American’s leave some portion of their vacation time unused.  With many firms employing a “use it or lose it” vacation policy, these folks never get the benefit of the paid time off (PTO) days that they give up. Fear not friends!  There is still hope!  The best way that you can ensure that you don’t lose your hard-earned paid time off is to plan to use it all! Below, I outline the PTO planning approach that I use to create my time off plan.  Happy Planning! 1. Grab a paper copy of your 1-page time off calendar. It is nice to start with a blank calendar where you…