Time off during the holidays: strategies I adapted from corporate life
One of the things I liked about being in corporate, was I could take time off without feeling guilty.
Sure, sometimes I had to employ somewhat ridiculous methods in order to get my company or clients to actually leave me be, but the results were the same. I was able to take time off from work - physically and also in my brain.
Being a business owner feels different.
When I first started my business, I heard someone say that the "bad" thing about being an entrepreneur meant that if you're sick, or taking a break, you won't earn money.
That definitely freaked me out - but I now know that's pretty much b.s. Even as a solopreneur there are so many ways to set things up in your business to mitigate this concern.
And you can do this without a passive income stream. I know because I've done it for the past 3 holiday seasons.
I use two specific strategies.
Strategy 1: Bare Minimum Holiday Work Plan
Come on, you knew I was going to say 😉
I'm always about working smarter, not harder. And during the holidays, I really don't want to work at all if I don't have to.
I look at two different times (in the US calendar): the week of Thanksgiving and the last two weeks of the year. Let me give you an example of my BMHWP for this Thanksgiving.
I know that I won't work on Wednesday-Saturday. I haven't wanted to work past Tuesday of the week since my early days in advertising. Now that I work when I feel like it, I might end up working on Saturday or Sunday, but there's a major difference. It's because I feel like. Not because I'm worried, think I should, or think I need to.
I look at things in a 3-week block. Week 1 is this week - pre Turkey day. Week 2 is the week I want off (Thanksgiving), and Week 3 is the week after I want to be off. looked at what I have going on this week and the week after Thanksgiving. This allows me to figure out what really needs to get done, and where I can slot things that I might have done week 2, into 1 or 3. It's not actually as complicated as I'm making it.
E.g. I had an in-person coffee scheduled for this week, but needed to move it. I moved it to next Wed because coffee doesn't feel like work to me. It also allows me to get more done this week, because I can keep this week to focus on work vs venturing out. Too much traveling too and fro during the week throws me off my focus when I'm at home.
If there was something I had due on week 3, I would be looking at what pieces could be done this week or Mon/Tue of next week.
Strategy 2: Pretend you don't have access to the internet.
I'm serious with this one. It's basically what I did when I worked for other people and wanted to be able to take time off - physically and mentally. The only difference is I pretended I was out of the country...something I told one of my bosses after I had to work through a vacay due to a difficult client and ineffective account director.
This strategy is really about creating and keeping boundaries.
For me, I act like I'm out of the country, which looks like:
Deleting a bunch of apps from my phone. I delete ones that I wouldn't want to 'pay for data' for, and any that will switch my brain into work mode. This includes email and social media.
If you don't want to delete apps, then you can turn off notifications and/or move them from your Home screen.
I set an Out of Office email that will auto-respond to anyone who emails me. In Gmail, this is the Vacation Responder.
I let my current clients know I'll be out of office. Managing client expectations ahead of time is always going to benefit you.
Bonus: if your family is demanding too much time, or you simply need a break from them, I employ these same strategies. Only, I tell them I need to work, and then 'go offline' from them. Seriously, I do this 😂
"But wait, there's more!" aka my gift for you.
I'm bringing back a Holiday version of Mini Sessions - specifically to help you with strategy 1.
You + me on a Zoom for 30 min
We'll create a Bare Minimum Holiday Work Plan, so you can navigate the holidays taking the time off I know you need. Without feeling:
Guilty you aren't working
Like you'll lose traction in your content, business, etc
Burnt out trying to manage fam and biz during an already stressful time
No cost. No pitching. Just 30 minutes to chat and get it figured out.
Schedule yours here!