Weeks ago, I planned to take some time off from my business during the holiday season. Now that the holiday season is here, I’m finding it extremely difficult to follow through with those plans.
I’m getting a ton of new ideas for my business and I’m wondering if I should just go with this surge of creativity or slow down for the holidays and disconnect.
As an entrepreneur, you learn to always be ‘on’ which makes it especially hard to disconnect from your business during the holiday season so you can enjoy loved ones and experiences.
If you’re wondering whether you should power through the holidays or slow down and disconnect at one point, my short answer is yes, give yourself some downtime.
However, when running a business, it’s not always that simple. Here are some things you need to consider when making your decision.
No Paid Time Off
One of the downsides of being self-employed is that there’s no actual paid time off. Now if you pay yourself a salary, you might be able to arrange something but it’s easier for business owners to end up spending more than they earn when they take time off.
Since there’s no one paying you to take time off, you’ll already be missing out on money. Plus, you may need to hire someone else to help keep things running smoothly while you’re off the grid.
The Holidays Season Can Be Great for Your Business
Many businesses like to take advantage of the holiday season and boost revenue by offering seasonal promotions and discounts to reel in more business. While the payoff might be nice and you’ll offer some value to customers and clients, it can often leave you feeling pressured to work through the holiday season leaving little time for anything else.
Working Ahead
If you have a lot of your plate but still want to take some time off to enjoy the holidays, I’d highly recommend working ahead. If you have client work, tell clients ahead of time that you’ll be taking a few days off toward the end of the year and ask what you can do to work ahead so their operations still run smoothly while you’re away.
You can also automate so many tasks these days so even if you’re running a promotion, you can schedule emails, social media posts, blog posts, and more to go live on certain dates when you’re not even near the computer.
Consider Outsourcing
If your workload seems like it will be too heavy for you to take time off during the holiday season consider outsourcing some tasks to your team. Yes you’ll have to spend money but as long as you stick to your budget, the benefits will most likely outweigh the cost.
If you have to pay someone to do a task for a few hours, that could mean getting to spend more time with your loved ones this holiday season which is seemingly priceless.
Compromise and Give Yourself At Least Two Days Off
I used to work on major holidays back when I was in college and I hated it. Being an entrepreneur, you have the privilege of choosing when you can work so you don’t have to be glued to a computer screen on Christmas Day.
If you have to power through this holiday season and remain productive, try to compromise with yourself by taking at least two days off (hopefully one of those includes Christmas Day).
As a busy business owner, even taking 24-48 hours away from your work can leave you feeling refreshed and well rested. Plus, everything won’t come crashing and burning down after just a day or two.
Summary: Use Your Time Wisely and Plan a Brief Break
Working for yourself can be so liberating, but it can sting around the holidays when you feel you can’t afford to take a day off. The best thing you can do, is plan out your schedule for these next few weeks carefully.
Work ahead, automate, figure out when it’s most convenient to take a break and jot your groundbreaking ideas down to save for later. You’ll still be able to execute them when you return to work refreshed.
