Ho-Ho-Holding On for the Holidays
For an over-caffeinated, results-driven, restless society like ours, the already brimming work plates can become even more filled with stress and unproductivity, thanks to the overwhelming calendar crunches and social stimulus that are “the holidays.” The 4th quarter. The vicious scramble for the last Tickle-Me Juggling Astronaut Elmo. Uncle Larry. Grandma’s “special ‘nog.” The credit card statement at the end of it all. . .
Maintaining focus is hard enough during the rest of the year, but attempting to meet goals and conduct prospect follow-ups with all of the other mad-dashers during this season can lead to despair and frustration, to say the least. If you want to maintain your work productivity (while forgetting about maintaining your waistline) during the holidays, Renee Cullinan and Shani Harmon composed a fabulous (and fabulously short) article, entitled, “How to Stay Productive During the Sprint to the Holidays.”
In their article, Cullinan and Harmon highlight three main tidbits to help set yourself up for continued success amidst the chaos: prioritizing, reflecting, focusing. First, the duo outlined the importance of sitting down, calendar in hand, well in advance before the madness begins, to identify what projects and goals are must-dos and strategize your bite-sized steps to success. Here, they’re careful to mention the often overlooked power of saying “no.” When it comes to holiday parties, “Which ones are truly essential? Just because you were invited doesn’t mean you need to say yes.”
Next, they move into the importance of reflection: looking back and allowing yourself to celebrate the successes and to identify failures in order to recalibrate for the not-so-distant future. Again, they’re astute in advising that if other people were involved in your success, those mates should be magnified for their contributions. Those little self-celebrations and those bigger teamwork parades will increase motivation for all parties involved, which will help propel you to the finish line in style!
Lastly, they invite readers to wage an attack against the temptation to work harder instead of smarter, with their counsel to focus on quality, instead of quantity. Busy work isn’t necessarily productive work. Recaps and clarifications are crucial for making sure that team members don’t clog the production progress.
Although Cullinan and Harmon don’t directly mention this last point verbatim, they allude to its necessity: accountability. One easy way to keep yourself on track during the holidays is to office in a shared space environment, with like-minded professionals, at a virtual office space like Office Evolution, where networking is natural and easy, and goal-sharing and tracking happens without hardly trying. Being around entrepreneurs who are focused and passionate will innately refocus and energize you toward your goals, and will teach you creative methods of getting there.
No matter what life throws at you, stay focused this holiday season with these helpful tips!
Christina Wheaton
Business Center Manager
720-874-9661
cwheaton@officeevolution.com
https://www.officeevolution.com
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