Dr Peter Cotton,

Director of Psychology Services

Health Services Australia

"Not taking leave can often be associated with an increased risk of 'burnout' and stress-related problems. There is a link between not taking leave and having a poor work-family balance."
"Employees who accrue their annual leave tend to display higher levels of depression or anxiety-related stress, irritability, sleep problems, poor concentration, heavy drinking or smoking problems, and poor digestion being the most common of the complaints."

Bruce Ritchie,

Editor of Men's Health

"There's nothing heroic about working ridiculous hours and going months without taking a break. Quite the opposite; there's a good chance such a crazy work ethic is making you less effective at work and less relaxed at home. This is why planning annual leave and taking holidays is so important."

"Men have it tougher now than ever before. Not only are they working longer hours and enduring the stress that goes along with it, but they're expected to be far more engaged husbands and involved dads than in previous generations. This quest for a sensible work/life balance is more likely to happen if you recharge your batteries with the downtime that's owed to you"

"Technology can undo all the good work of a holiday. Do you really want that BlackBerry texting or emailing you while on leave? It's your holiday. Leave the phone at home!"

"Australian men are busier than ever at work and more active than their fathers when it comes to being a dad and husband. Taking a holiday allows them to get some balance back into their lives."

"Every smart employer knows that a well-rested and healthy employee is a more productive member of their team."

Serge Sardo,

Australian Human Resources Institute CEO

"Many organisations fail to acknowledge that the financial impact of an over-worked and over-stressed workforce can be far greater than providing additional resources to cover for employees' leave absences"

Karen Cheng,

Top Australian Lifestyle Blogger

"Even in the most enjoyable job, stress builds up, perspective is lost, and your important, long term maintenance of your personal physical and emotional health can suffer. So spend more time with your loved ones and friends. We need to take a good chunk of time to rest, recharge, and allow ourselves to come back to our jobs, reinvigorated. Your time is what you make of it. Your life is happening right now, not some time later. As the old saying goes: This is not a rehearsal."

"With my two older kids at school now, I realise how little time I get to see them, even as a stay at home mum. So long weekends and holidays have become even more special for us – that's when we try to go exploring Australia as a family. I know that in a blink of an eye, 20 years will have passed, and I'll be sitting around in my lounge room with grandchildren at my feet, wondering: Where has all the time gone?"

"I have lots of friends in Asia. They are really very jealous of Australians, because while we take our work very seriously, we also put an equal importance on relaxing. We work hard, and we play hard. I really believe that this is part of the success of Aussies who work overseas. They bring with them a confident sense of balance that makes them better at their jobs. Taking all your holidays, when they are due, should be a great Aussie tradition, a part of our culture."

"Take care of yourself. Take care of your marriage. Spend time with your children. Take them to the places you used to go when you were a kid, and then take them somewhere you've never been before. You'll discover cool stuff about them, and yourself. Have a good old Aussie holiday."

Bernard Salt,

Partner, KMPG

"The No Leave, No Life program is absolutely timely. It is critical to Australian businesses to understand that people are less effective if they don't take their entitled annual leave. There's a great tendancy by employees to think that they are indispensable in a downturn. The fact of the matter is you are not indispensable; you do need to take leave. You're a more effective and productive worker if you do take leave."

"We have developed a culture over the last few years of deferring our annual leave - just because things were too busy and now because things are slowing down. But once the No Leave, No Life program takes effect, I think that employees will understand that it improves their productivity and it's actually better for business overall if they're refreshed and relaxed."