Making the Most of Time Off: How To Wind Down Well
Relax and recharge with effective rest.
For business owners, winding down and taking time to recharge is a tall order. So many people choose self-employment for the flexibility; so they can have control over their working hours and find balance.
And yet, often the opposite is true. Business owners place so much pressure on themselves to please customers, employees, and others that a break seems out of the question.
We wanted to talk this December about winding down for the holiday period. Taking some time off is important. What’s even more important is using that time effectively, to do what recharges and refreshes you so you can enter the new year as the best version of you.
For some expert insight, we talked to experienced Kiwi life coach Tracey Hancock. Tracey’s work is all about helping people to live WELL. To achieve the lifestyle and balance that they want and need. Exactly what we want for our clients and all small business owners out there!
Read on to find out how you can use your holiday period—whether the traditional December/January shutdown or another time during the year—to relax and recharge in a way that’s effective for you.
Find out what energises you
One of the recurring ideas throughout our chat with Tracey was that it’s important to identify exactly what energises, refreshes, and recharges YOU specifically. For some people, this is sitting down and moving as little as possible. For others, it’s getting outside for a hike, a run, a mountain biking session, or another recreational activity. For many of our tradie clients, having unhurried time to work on their own projects is perfect.
Some call it self-care. Call it whatever you want! In order to properly recharge during your time off, you have to know what you need. Do a little soul-searching and ask yourself what really fills your cup.
Identifying the ways you want and need to spend your time off is crucial to a period of rest that truly feels refreshing. So be honest with yourself and ask:
“What do I truly enjoy doing?”
“What makes me feel fulfilled and happy?”
“What fuels me?”
Make it a priority
This is perhaps the hardest part of the winding down process. Truthfully, it’s something that we need to practice all year round.
Tracey made it clear that once you identify what energises you, you have to PRIORITISE it. The activities that keep you sane and fill your cup should be scheduled as non-negotiables, whether that means a block of several weeks over the Christmas and New Years period or a small but regular amount of time to do what you love.
For some, it might look like taking half an hour daily to simply go for a walk. For others, it might mean blocking off days in January for a hunting or fishing excursion or family holiday at the beach. The key here is to recognise that these things are just as important as work and other commitments.
Life happens. For tradies, we know that includes emergencies that need your attention then and there. So your plans might get disrupted—your daily walk or weekly solo coffee date might not happen when you scheduled them for. But don’t ditch them all together! Simply be flexible and ensure those self-care activities remain a priority in your schedule and that they happen once the emergency is dealt with.
Allow yourself to say “no”
Saying “no” is something that business owners struggle with all year round, but it becomes particularly prevalent in December. Knowing when to turn down a job or an invitation will create the space you need to have an enjoyable and refreshing holiday period; to avoid the trap of arriving at Christmas Day tired and burnt out.
If you have too many Christmas functions on the calendar, decide which you are most excited about and say “no” to the others. They are an invitation and not a summons. Intentionally take on fewer work projects in December so you aren’t rushing to get them done before the 25th. Outsource the planning for the end-of-year lunch.
You have to give yourself permission to say “no”, Tracey emphasised. To agree to everything will leave you with no time to prioritise the self-care or energising activities laid out above—and remember, those are non-negotiable!
Plan ahead to wind down effectively
Preparing for a refreshing break starts well before December. Tracey shared with us that she set her “end date” for the year in January—and that it was well before the 25th.
A solid end date to work towards, set well in advance, allows you to wrap things up work-wise so you can go into the Christmas and New Year period with significantly less stress. It requires good planning and good communication with your team and clients, but is well worth it to start the new year feeling ready to take on the world.
This applies to tasks beyond just work, too. A lot of Christmas prep can be done in advance to minimise the to-do list in the weeks leading up to the day itself. Buying presents, baking, anything that you really want to achieve—start earlier!
What are your plans beyond Christmas day? Tracey suggested taking a day off work earlier in the month to prepare vehicles, boats, gear, and anything else that you’ll need for a stress-free start to your break.
The aim is to take as much pressure off as possible in December. Running around like a headless chicken on Christmas Eve or the morning before you depart for the beach isn’t a compulsory part of the process. Plan and prepare in advance, just like you would for any other very important task.
Reflect on the year pragmatically
The end of the year is a time during which business owners look back and consider what they have achieved and what they have not. If you are the goal-setting type, Christmas is often the end date that determines whether you hit the mark or missed it.
Beating yourself up for falling short of a goal is not a good way to wind down the year—that probably goes without saying. But that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t review and reflect.
If there’s a business goal that you didn’t achieve, acknowledge it. Write it down. Additionally, acknowledge the successes you had in the year just gone. Write those down too, and focus on them.
The key here, Tracey noted, is to learn from both the failures and the successes. Allowing any bumps in the road to negatively affect your mindset is not productive. Instead, focus on the lessons you’ve learnt and use those when you plan for 2022. Because it would be better to start the year feeling like you are on the front foot, rather than feeling stuck or held back, right?!
Let’s be honest—both 2020 and 2021 were tough years. With so much uncertainty, if your business is still operating then you have cause to celebrate.
Learn more
To read more on living well and creating the life you desire, we recommend taking a look at Tracey’s insightful blog. You can also follow her on Facebook to put some uplifting and enlightening content in your feed.
Identify the activities that energise, recharge, and refresh you—then plan for and prioritise them to end the year on a positive note!
