"Back away from the laptop," the voice inside my head pleaded with my irrational 'addicted to email' self. It was a snowy, clear morning in Central Oregon and I had at least a 1/2 hour before my kids or the rest of my family woke up. It was prime email-checking time. But this time, I fought the urge. I was on vacation and I needed to unplug after a hectic, insanely busy December at work.

An amazing thing happened. I succeeded in not checking my email. Here's how I did it:

1. I kept my laptop closed. An open laptop screen is like the gateway drug to email addiction. Keep it closed. Period.

2. I found a distraction, otherwise known as a healthy activity. A brisk walk accross the meadow with my dog, a lovable but goofy yellow lab.

3. I found another distraction - finishing up a great entrepreneurial book called Small Giants by Bo Burlingham.

4. Have an awesome plan for the day - went skiing at Mt. Bachelor with a friend. We happened to have a bluebird day with 11 inches of dry powder.

5. Stretch, relax, find a hot tub and submerge for an hour, then eat well with friends and family that night.

6. Check email the next morning - don't kid yourself into thinking that you can avoid email forever - this just causes more anxiety of returning to an overwhelming and urgent stack of emails in your inbox.

Ryan Buchanan is the CEO and Founder of eROI