The 2015 Holiday Season Survival Guide!
November 27, 2015Dealing with the work Christmas party!
Christmas is fast approaching and that can mean only one thing – the work Christmas party!
It’s a chance for you to reward your employees hard work throughout the year and for them to unwind. However, they can also lead to falling-outs, fights and unwanted frolics.
As an employer you are equally responsible for your employees health and safety during the office Christmas party as you are when they are in the workplace.
Our three top tips for a fab party are:
1) Ensure a good supply of food is provided and that alcohol is served in a responsible manner.
– Nothing helps things get out of hand quicker than empty stomachs and a copious supply of alcohol! Oh and make sure there are plenty of non-alcohol options as well!
2) Take the party away from the workplace.
– People find it much harder to get in the party spirit when they are still in the work environment.
3) Prior to the party be sure to make your managers aware that they have the authority to step in should it look like anything is getting out of control.
– It’s a work party so managers and business owners are as responsible as they would be during normal work activities.
Here are some tips to ensure your Christmas party is a success!
Dealing with a Christmas “wind down”
There can be high cost of winding down for Christmas!
The end of the year means beautiful weather, Christmas shopping and end-of-year parties – and, worryingly for business owners and managers, it can also mean a big slump in worker productivity.
Coming into the holiday period your staff are likely to go into wind down mode. That’s great if your business enters its quietest trading periods over the holidays. But what if your business is ramping up and your staff are ramping down? OR what if you are quieter over the holidays but you need your staff to gear up and get those things done that were neglected and put on the back burner during a busy year?
The biggest tip to preventing the holiday slump? Bring your Christmas party forward to October – a big party can be used to “kick off” the holiday period instead of winding down towards it!
Read more about coping with the holiday slump.
Dealing with YOUR holiday time off (or lack thereof!)
According to a MYOB report commissioned in April 2012, 1 out of 3 business owners haven’t taken a holiday/break since they started their business – that’s over 10 years ago for most of them!
As a small business owner or manager do you really think you can’t justify taking time off from your business because you are the boss or you are the person running the business? You can be a business owner and / or manager and still have a life!
There are many great reasons for taking a holiday break – here are three of them:
1. Physical down time
– you work hard to grow and maintain your small business. Trying to be superhuman will certainly take its toll if you allow it to. Give your body a break by taking a holiday or some short breaks. You’ll be healthier for it!
2. Mental down time
– if you don’t allow yourself to get away from the daily hustle of your business your peace of mind and general well-being will most definitely suffer. Take a break and go play. Your mind will thank you!
3. Spend time with loved ones
– your family and friends see you working ALL the time and rarely coming up for air. Both you and they will appreciate spending some quality time together.
You’ll feel better about yourself and about your work if you take a holiday once in a while.
Read about how not taking holidays is actually bad for your brain and your small business.
Dealing with all the Public Holidays!
Whether it’s to help you plan your holidays, plan your staffing or plan your payroll here is a useful list of public holidays for 2015 and 2015.
Also, to help you manage your staffing on public holidays here is a great resource providing guidelines on requesting and refusing leave on public holidays!