Are you feeling it – the increase?

Chances are, if you work in marketing, advertising, real estate or retail, among many other industries, you’re feeling a pinch heading towards the silly season.

And it can be ever so silly.

While some industries wind up and audible sighs of relief can be heard all round, come mid-December, some others have that final surge. A surge that requires boundless energy, a smile to remain on your face, albeit pasted at times and an ability to stay on task.

You may need to be prepared for extra work, tighter deadlines and days that will leave your phone battery flat.

So, how to get through?

Given here at TPW we have worked in a variety of roles, including legal and freelance, ranging from smaller businesses, through to international companies, we have gleaned a few hot tips.

Our experience of now working for our own business has in turn made us really look at the different patches throughout the year. We are often reflecting on how we can best manage these to serve our clients and additionally remain fresh ourselves.

In no particular order, some ideas for surviving the end of the year without coming out the other side extremely frayed:

• Combine your work and leisure calendars side-by-side to minimise over-committing: The work parties can start in November. Be prepared for clashes with family and friends. Have your ‘Thank You’ and ‘Sorry’ cards at the ready – chances are you will miss a birthday, engagement or farewell. (Us December babies are used to this though, don’t worry, ahem.)
• What can you outsource? Even if it’s only for the month of December. Because no-one wants to be that person martyring themselves ironing at midnight, because the days are too jam-packed. If your budget can stretch, be it office, or personal, outsource some tasks that seem particularly overwhelming come a busy spell at work.
• Get.Your.Shopping.Done-Now! Whether you celebrate Christmas or not, if you do have gifts to buy for late December, why not make this year the year that you do get it all done now? I know some people hold off until those super-special sales in those last few days, but a little (not so) secret: ‘those’ sales are already on – now! It actually seems that they now start in October.
• Keep a reward in sight, to help you breathe through particularly frantic days. If you are taking time off around the end of the year and/or early January, keep that in mind. Some days are bound to have hiccups, particularly if you are a real estate agent, broker, or similar. But, guess what – you’ve almost made it through the whole of 2016! Sleep-ins and slow, sunshine-filled days aren’t far away. Hold on, you’re almost there.

  

• With the above in mind, don’t neglect your health. If you are working longer days at the moment and are missing out a higher quantity of sleep each week than typical, you need to check in with yourself each day. What could you do, each and every day, to ensure that you are filling your tank? Maybe you need to buy one of those kind of fancy 3-litre drink bottles from a sports/health store, and ensure you’ve drunk it by the end of each day. Or perhaps, it’s allowing for one extra fitness class each week. It may seem like it’s adding, not subtracting, during a busy time. But if only an extra hour of something that is going to boost your day/week overall, allow it to happen.

  

• One final point to consider is that this time of year can be a particular strain for people, financially, emotionally and otherwise. If you’re busy working and feeling overwhelmed, maybe grab perspective and remember: if you’re working, succeeding and achieving, in a sense you are fortunate. Being mindful and thankful, even if only for a minute, can do wonders for changing a negative mindset into a positive one. And a positive mindset is a much-needed thing when a busy work year is winding up!

  

And if there is anything you can do to help others who may not be as fortunate as you, make time for that too. It could be an absolutely wonderful and fulfilling way to finish off your 2016.