Blogmas #18 ⛄ A Wintery Working Holiday Routine

1. Make a schedule.
   This is a great thing to do, whether you work in an office or from home.  Get as creative as you like!  You could make a fancy on in a spreadsheet, or just use a calendar and do it by hand.  I like using colours for different things too - I will write my practice hours in red, my computer work hours in blue and concerts in yellow.  Once all the work hours are put in for each day of the holiday period, it will be easy to see when you are free and this gives you a great work-life balance too - you will ensure you get all your work done while still knowing you have free time to relax.
2. Get it done early.
   I know this might not be possible for everyone, especially if your work hours are already set by someone else.  But if you have control of your work hours my BEST advice to you is get it done as early as possible.  It's much better to get the work done first and then be able to fully chill out, instead of having that awful feeling of knowing you have to work hanging over you all day.  The earlier you get it done the sooner you can be finished with it and bring on the Christmas party.
3. Make the schedule available to everyone.
   If you are spending your holiday with family or friends, I would really recommend hanging the schedule up somewhere in the house so that everyone can see it.  Then everyone will know when you have to work and will be able to make plans around you.  You also don't want to miss any of the good stuff this Christmas; if someone suggests going for a nice Christmas walk together or cooking a meal, you will be able to plan it for when you are free.
4. Write a list.
   I'm a big fan of to-do lists.  They are always great, but especially when you have to work during the holiday.  The night before, write a list of things you have to complete the next day.  Once you see it all written out, it usually doesn't seem so bad, or look like that much.  Preparation is key in a working routine, and the amazing feeling of crossing things off the list is sooo worth it.
5. Make it compact.
   This isn't the time for long, drawn out work, spending hours faffing around on the computer, doing extra things that don't really need to be done now.  Working during the holiday calls for compact work.  I'm not saying don't do it properly, I'm saying do it the best you can as quickly as possible.  We all know what procrastination is like, or working slowly to fill up extra time, deliberately taking longer over some tasks than we need to.  Just cut that stuff out and get the important stuff done. Nice, neat, compact.
6. Lights!
   One thing that makes motivation to work during the Christmas holiday really difficult are the dark mornings and evenings that we have to wake up and come home in.  We can set as many alarms as we want, it doesn't make getting out of bed any easier.  My one tip for this would be to turn the lights on as soon as you hear the alarm, and then to have a lot of light in your work place.  It's really helpful for waking up (if a little brutal) and gives a really bright and cosy feel to the work space.
7. Bring Christmas to work!
   If you have to work during Christmas, or even on Christmas day itself, and you are sad because of all the festive stuff you are missing, why not bring a little piece of Christmas to work!  It could be wearing a silly hat, some red lipstick, sharing Christmas crackers or some tasty treats with your colleagues, decorating your work space, playing some Christmas music.  Whatever it is that makes you feel happy and festive, bring that to work and it will make working so much easier.

Labels: Life