It's not Christmas until...

December is a funny time of year.

It’s a time of year that we start counting down until the end, focused on the festivities of Christmas and (judging by the supermarket queues) overindulging in copious quantities of food.

We have to do ‘the big shop’ to last us a few days (knowing that shops are only really closed for two days).

We buy cards and last-minute gifts; wrap the presents; listen to Christmas music and watch Christmas films.  

After this, we focus on the turn of the year - reviewing how the current year has gone and making plans for the following year, all while making plans for what happens when the clocks strike midnight.

NOT ENOUGH TIME

Professionally, we try to cram in four-weeks’ worth of work into three.

At the beginning of December, we tell ourselves we have enough time – but it’s never enough.

This year, with Christmas falling in the middle of the week, schools and most workplaces finished last Friday.  I wrote a post asking everyone on LinkedIn when they finished… and it seems everyone already has (judging by the low view-count).

It would be easy to assume that everyone is looking forward to Christmas, and that we all run out of our workplaces excitedly screaming.

But it’s not like that for everyone.

NOT MERRY FOR ALL

If you have followed me for a while, you know that Christmas is not a good time for me, and it’s not something I am comfortable with.  I don’t enjoy Christmas and try to avoid some of the festivities around it.

However, this year, my son Noah will be spending a couple of days with me, for the first time since he was a child.  He came over earlier in the month to get acclimatised, spend some time with my wife (who he hasn’t seen for years) and take our dog Basil for a walk (we even bought Noah some wellies so he can do this).

So, all being well, it should be a good one this year.

IT'S NOT CHRISTMAS UNTIL...

There are two annual traditions which have taken place at Christmas over the last few years.

The first is going to Pete Tong’s ‘Ibiza Classica’ event at the O2 Arena in London.  My wife and I go with her niece Zoe and my friends Craig and Carole to see the superstar DJ,and we’ve been going since 2019 (with the exception of 2020 due to the pandemic).  

We always go on the last day of the tour, which is always a Saturday.  It’s so good, we bought tickets for 2025 even before attending this year.

The second tradition is sitting on the couch with Basil on Christmas Eve, watching the best Christmas movie of all time – Die Hard.

And, despite what Bruce Willis tells you, Die Hard IS a Christmas movie.

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Ultimately, regardless of the time of year, spending time with friends and family is important to me; and it's not Christmas until these two traditions take place.

LOOK AFTER YOUR TEAM

Me and my team are taking a well-earned break over Christmas.  My retained clients know they can get hold of me in an emergency; but my team are off work and spending quality time with their families.

As I said earlier, Christmas is a tough time for many.  If you are an employer, please don’t assume everyone will be having a great time.

I always say your people are your biggest asset.  Treat them as individuals, and take some time to get to know them. I appreciate this isn't always easy, but please ensure that your team know that, when they need support or someone to talk to, they have somewhere to go.

I encourage all my clients to talk to their teams before Christmas, and I also urge everyone to talk to them in January too, after the holidays, to see how it all went and how they are feeling.

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Aside from the professional advantage of staff who feel valued are often more productive - more importantly, it's the right thing to do.

ENJOY THE BREAK

Other than my usual traditions, I will be relaxing, spending time with friends and family, and recuperating ready for 2025.

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We have taken on some great clients recently, and I know that it will be a busy time once we're back in January. In addition, I'm looking forward to another year in business and seeing where 2025 takes us.

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Of course, if you need any HR support and want to have a chat in the new year, then please do not hesitate to get in touch.

In the meantime, whatever you are doing, I hope you stay safe and are as happy as you can be.  See you all in 2025.

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