Why You Should Not Check Out Of Your 2016 Biz ' Coz of the Holidays

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Certain businesses, like retail, have their best months during the holiday seasons. But until recently, I have been sold to the conventional wisdom that many other kinds of businesses, like my ideal clients as Catholic business owners, don’t have any time to talk to me or anyone about how I could serve them until after the first of the year. Basically, the message was, stop marketing by Halloween, nestle in, do your goals and look towards 2017. No one is going to buy during a busy holiday season.

Today I know that is malarkey.

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And it’s bad advice for you and your business. Think of Newton’s first Law of Motion: an object at rest tends to stay at rest, and an object in motion tends to stay in motion, with the same direction and speed.

Being in the transformation business right now is the perfect time to talk with existing and potential clients. Wrapping up the end of the year and celebrating with family and friends is the perfect time to reflect, review, and discern the intentions you want to set for the next year.

And here are five reasons why:

1. IT IS ADVENT, NOT  CHRISTMAS

Technically we are not in the Christmas season until Christmas. The four or so weeks before Christmas are really times of spiritual, emotional, and physical preparation for Christ’s birth as part of Advent. I know the rest of the world didn’t get the memo on that. While we can’t control that, schedules tend to burst with Christmas parties, programs, and other social events. We can tame our attitude to be one of prayerful quietness and having the proper perspective, not letting ourselves get sucked into the materialism and excesses that can often accompany this time of year. In other words, as Christians, we should be pacing ourselves any way to make time, energy and space to prepare our heart for Christ’s coming.

2. NOW IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO GROW IN WORK / LIFE BALANCE

When I encourage my clients not to check out on working towards their business vision once Thanksgiving hits, I don’t mean they should be driving full steam ahead. I get it. There are multiple additional obligations, expenses, perhaps dealing with some good and bad stress of being around extended family. I encourage my clients to be fully present when they are in social situations and spending time with family and friends, while also being fully present and engaged when they are “on the clock” at work. Doing so can help people make better choices in the tasks they do choose to complete during work time. This helps sharpen the saw on their work/life balance skills.

3. IT’S NOT THE HOURS; IT’S ACTIVATING YOUR UNCONSCIOUS

Along the lines of the working smart thing, keeping your hands on the steering wheel of your business instead of being in the back seat of the limo of life these last six weeks of the year doesn’t necessarily have anything to do with the hours you put in at work. There are only so many hours in the day. When you add extra responsibilities that take time, it does rob you of the time to work. However, by being clear and focused on your vision through the holidays, your unconscious mind is working with you, not against you. It sees ways to be efficient, points out on-the-spot opportunities you otherwise would have missed. When you are checked out, typically your unconscious is riddled with conflicting priorities and goals, leaving you with low-grade anxiety about your lack of preparation for January.

4. THE BEST MANIFESTING COMES WITH THE RIGHT MIX OF WORK AND PLAY

There actually is a point of diminishing returns in the amount of time you spend “working,” even if you enjoy your work. Your mind and soul need air to breathe and time away from work to process properly. The holiday activities that take you away from work can actually provide the change of pace to help you have a different perspective and come back to work with even better ideas on how to uplevel your life.

5. KEEP THE TRAIN MOVING

Even if you cut back your work hours to accommodate the added demands of the holiday season, you business locomotive still is moving forward, despite being at a slower pace. In January, all you need then is to step on the gas. You are clear where you are headed and with the reduced social calendar you can move at rapid speed. In contrast, if you parked your train, you are stuck in the station trying to kick up the engine and don’t start making a real impact until February or March.

Don’t let the holidays be your excuse for not moving steadily towards your vision in the coming year. Saving yourself from the guilt of procrastination not only can help your cash flow when 2017 enters but it may help you avoid the traditional holiday weight gain. Instead of eating, drinking, and being merry, you can be at peace, clear-headed, and full of God’s grace.

Catholic Entrepreneurs Biz and Life Tips:  Scale back your business by eliminating or reducing the parts of your work that aren’t critical to your bottom line, so you can fully enjoy the time with your loved ones.

Copyright 2016 Christina Weber