The upcoming Holiday break has the same effect on an employee as a long weekend… times 10. You know how it is when you have a long weekend coming up and you mentally check out the Tuesday before and don’t check back in until the following Wednesday – the same goes for the holiday season. At some point on December 1^st, everyone decides that they aren’t going to do anything productive for the rest of the month.

Here are 3 easy steps to keep things rolling (without looking like a jerk):

1. Email a ‘to do’ list:
   Send out an email to your employees at the beginning of the month detailing tasks, projects, and anything that needs to be completed before the holiday. Then send another one after the holiday to welcome your team back and let them know what is coming up for the company in the near future.
2. Go hard until you reach the finish line:
   If possible, try to plan deadlines coinciding with the beginning of the holiday. That way everyone is inspired and motivated until the last day, and will start the holiday feeling a sense of accomplishment.
3. Cut up bite size pieces:
   It can be hard to focus on projects that won’t be completed for a very long time when you get back to work and still have holiday brain. Try to start the year off with projects that have a definitive end in the near future. This will motivate the team to complete the projects and get back into work mode, rather than a starting long assignment that they will have a hard time making a dent in.