3 Ways to Help Keep Your Focus throughout Thanksgiving and Christmas
The holiday season is here and while it may be easy for us
to get lost in the turkey, sugar plums, family and friends, as business owners
we know how important it is to keep our focus on the business. It is a normal
occurrence for professionals to lose focus and motivation during the time
between Thanksgiving and Christmas simply because they are more interested in
their personal lives – being with loved ones, taking trips, and holiday
shopping – than they are on being dedicated to their job. While this is normal
in most cases, it can often lead to problems within a business. Luckily there
are some ways for professionals to combat the holiday laziness and keep their
business on track.
Communicate Holiday Expectations to Your Employees
Holiday fever affects more than just business owners – this
truly has an impact on everyone who works across the country. Employees lack of
focus can have just as much of a negative impact on the business as an owners,
so it is important to make sure the expectations for work around the holidays
are set and communicated effectively. When creating this plan of expectations,
however, it is important to keep the employees needs in mind.
The weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas are usually
filled with family activities, including children’s concerts, pictures with
Santa, and family gatherings. Because of this, if your business operations
allow, it may be beneficial to have a flexible holiday schedule, no mandatory
overtime, and even a few extra days off for employees around the holidays. When
a business owners shows their employees that they care, the employees are more
likely to continue working hard.
Prioritize Your Tasks
Business owners have a ton of tasks on their plates at all
times from payroll to meeting sales numbers for the year. But the end of the
year is an especially busy time when you consider year end evaluations, next
year plans, and everything else that comes with closing out a fiscal year.
While the holidays fall around the same time as many year-end business
practices, it is important to make sure you prioritize the items that need to
get done and allow yourself to put off less important tasks until the New Year.
Also, do not over commit – understand your limitations and
do not commit to extra work that will inhibit you from completing the other
important items on your to-do list. Prioritizing your to-do list and keeping commitments
to a minimum will help to ensure that everything that needs to be done gets
done and also allows you to kick back, relax, and enjoy the holiday spirit with
family and friends.
Get a Head Start
If you know the end of the year and holiday season is going
to be busy, why not get a jump start on tasks that can be completed early? When
the mid-year hits, take some time to sit down and decide what tasks will need
to be completed before the end of the year. Then, take that list and assign the
tasks specific completion dates. If a “year-end” task can be completed before
the end of December, do it! This is one less thing on your plate for the true
end of the year. Scheduling out your tasks will also help to keep you on track
when the holiday season crunch does come around. Planning ahead and sticking to
that plan will help to relieve a lot of stress as well as guarantee that
important items get accomplished before it is too late.
Do you need more help keeping or getting your small business on track? Did you know
that Stacy O'Quinn has helped dozens of entrepreneurs create a six figure
income and he would love to help you too! For more information about Stacy and
to find out what he can do for you, click here.
*Photo Courtesy of Ed Schipul via Creative Commons License
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