10 Ways to Plan for Taking a Break this Holiday
Not taking a break is one of the worst things you can do to yourself. You’ll erode productivity, turn out poor work, dampen creativity, diminish enjoyment, act like a monster, and eventually burn out. It is that time of the year, yet again.
Holiday seasons are periods when we fully relax our body and mind. The trouble with taking a vacation from work over the holidays is that there is just so much to do. A recent survey found that three quarters (76%) of small business owners and entrepreneurs forego holidays to keep their business running smoothly.
As a small business owner, the thought of leaving you business during the holiday season can leave you restless or have many unanswered questions like: will things fall apart? What if someone forgets to check the company email and something important is missed?
Taking a break can be daunting when you have a business to keep going, but what is the point of investing all this time and effort if you can’t enjoy the fruits of your labour? Having a holiday break lets you reflect on what you’ve achieved and where you want to take your business to next year. And these things you can do, when you switch off and enjoy some rejuvenation time.
There’s never a Perfect Time to Take a Break, Just Do It:
There is never a perfect time to take a break, so just do it! But you know what, there will always be things happening that make taking time off hard. If you wait for the perfect break in operations, you might be waiting until the business is no more. Be realistic with when you should go, but don’t put off a break for things that will always be a part of the day-to-day operations of your business. You have to realise that there would never be a right time, so do it, take a break and close for a little bit.
Make a List:
Making a list is one of the most important things to do. Not only does it give you a list of all the things that you need to do, but it also allows you to empty your head of all the things that you keep in there. A list helps you focus on the right things during the holiday breaks, without having to forget the important things that need to be done. Have a separate list for the different aspects of your life; one for work, family, and all the social outings you have to attend. Knowing what you need to do or where to be before the time of the event allows you to plan your day more effectively than anything else you can do! It makes your life less stressful! It’s a real game-changer during the holidays.
Before you Close for the Year, Contact Clients and Customers in Advance:
Take a walk through your calendar to see what’s coming up in the next month and a half. Is there anything that can be rescheduled or dropped? You’ll want to know what you have coming up so that you can adequately plan for it.
It’s okay to take a break; your customers would understand that you need some time off. But do right by them, and by informing them about your closure early enough and in advance, you can come up with a plan together about what they might need while you’re away. This might include fulfilling some orders early, doing some proactive maintenance work or working out what they’re likely to need while you’re away. Speaking with customers won’t just help to manage expectations when you’re not around, it also shows them that you care and this will help you build relationships too.
Create a Schedule:
Be sure to pay attention to any client projects with deadlines during this busy season. As your focus will be diverted in more than usual in this busy season, block out time in your schedule to make sure deliverables are ready on time.
Before you take that break, schedule as much as possible, and you can even take advantage of today’s technology to schedule what you can in advance. There are tonnes of stuff you can manage that doesn’t require you to be near a computer. You can schedule emails, social media posts, and payments, allowing your business to run to an extent while you’re chilling in a resort. Also, you can use an automatic email responder and a tool such as Hootsuite to schedule social media posts. You can even set up email reminders to chase outstanding invoices while you’re away.
Delegate What You Can:
By delegating tasks, you give your employees some extra responsibility. When you delegate tasks especially as you are going away, it might be an opportunity to let them show capabilities. They might be keen for the opportunity to show you what they can do. As well as being an encouraging step for them, it could also help your business in the long run. Asking for their input will lead to them feeling valued and like you trust them to run the show. It is a great way to build relationships where you can lean on each other.
Plan on How You’ll Keep Contact:
Plan on how you’ll keep contact, so you can either choose to stay connected to your email 24/7, connected for only certain periods or completely shut off. It’s important that everyone knows that you are going to be away. Making a clear decision allows clients and employees to know what to expect. Then, clearly set out the circumstances under which you should be contacted. Create contingency plans for what to do if something goes wrong, and so your customers can also keep in contact in case of emergencies.
Unplug from Work:
Taking a break isn’t even ideal for a small business owner because it comes with constant worry about what’s going on while you’re out of touch. But it’s important you give yourself permission to spend some time away from your business. Truly, this step may be the hardest of all–convincing yourself to view your time away as adding to your overall productivity, not taking away from it. Taking a break isn’t even ideal for a small business owner because it comes with constant worry about what’s going on while you’re out of touch.
Turn Off Notifications:
Have you told your customers that you are taking a break or won’t be responding to emails? Then don’t. If you’re planning to monitor messages periodically, determine ahead of time the days and times that will happen. Here are a few other ideas:
• Turn off notifications on your phone.
• Put your phone in airplane mode.
• Temporarily remove the apps you use most.
• Limit time on social media.
Try Out Something New
To focus while spending some time off your business, try out a new hobby or skill. By taking yourself out of your usual mental patterns, you’ll go back to work refreshed. More than that, you take your mind off your customers and enjoy your break.
Enjoy Yourself:
Spend at least some of your time off doing things that you truly enjoy. But make sure to set aside at least some of your time off to do something you know will make you happy.
