We’ve made it ya’ll!! It’s finally let’s circle back to next year season!! This might be my opinion, but I take the holidays and vacation seriously. I fully understand that not everyone celebrates the holidays, but there does come a point when you have done all the laboring that you can do. Rest and rejuvenation are as critical to productivity as the actual work. As we head into Christmas this week, I wanted to take the time to highlight five things that employees truly want for the holidays.
- Space: Now is not the time to add more assignments. What is not done by the end of 2025 will still be waiting for you in 2026. Your employees want the space and time to disconnect from their work to live the other parts of the lives. Work is a small part of who we are. Give them the space and time away from the office. We might spend 40+ hours together every week, but they have families and friends outside of work that they would like to connect with.
- Silence: This connects to space as well, but in giving your employees space do not speak to them. Do not message them with one quick question or quick thought or quick anything. Do not send them unnecessary emails because the thought crossed your mind. What they want more than anything is silence. Let them be.
- Recognition: As a leader or a boss, have you expressed any sort of appreciation or recognition for all the effort that your employees have given this year? Amid a world on the brink of collapse, your employees have continued to show up. To attend meetings that could have been emails, have burnt the candle on both ends. How have you recognized their efforts this year?
- Gifts: Many organizations around this time of year give gifts to their staff and it is often something that no one wants. No one wants a sweater with the company logo. Or a notebook or stickers or anything with company branding. We are not walking advertisements. Take the same money you were going to spend per employee and give it to them either as a bonus or in the form of a gift card. Also do not take the cost of the gift card out of their paychecks. Most of us work because it is how we pay our bills. If senior leadership values their year-end bonuses, please do not think that your staff won’t either.
- A better new year: We’ve all seen the headlines and news about how everyone is feeling burnt out and overwhelmed with work. As organizations take the time to gather and plan for 2026, there should be conversations around combatting staff burnout and fatigue. How do you encourage staff to take time off? How do you lighten the load of your staff? Are people juggling multiple roles because you refuse to hire for new positions? Are you leading by example or by words only? What are you doing to ensure that your staff is growing in their current position and growing into new positions? How are you nurturing your staff?
I wish you all a joyous and safe December. Here’s hoping to a better 2026!!