Pivot Growth Partners’ Post

TIP OF THE WEEK: During the holidays you must be realistic about what you can and can’t do both personally and professionally. There are only 24 hours in the day so you must decide where you draw the line so you don’t over extend yourself and add to the stress of the holidays. Can the work project changes wait until after the holiday? Can someone else attend the work related holiday party in your place? Maybe offer to extend holiday sales pricing until after the holiday to avoid last minute rush orders. Ask if a team member wants to work the holiday hours. Some may not have holiday plans or family in town. It may be tempting to say yes to everything during the holidays but know that it is ok to say no without any explanation if you don't have the time or just don't want to.

WAS YOUR EMPLOYEE STUCK ON HOLIDAY?   AS the traditional summer holiday period ends, one thing I've not discussed is what happens when an employee is stuck on holiday. Unexpected travel disruptions happen.  We've seen this with the eruptions of volcanoes in Iceland and the disruption to airline travel that caused. Did you know this month marks the fifth anniversary of the collapse of Thomas Cook? Around 150,000 holiday makers were stuck leading to the largest UK repatriation outside of war-time. So, what do you do when one of your employees is stuck on holiday and can’t return to work as scheduled?   Here’s a practical guide to handle this situation:   1. Stay Calm & Gather Facts First things first: remain calm and get all the relevant information. Ask your employee to provide details: - What is causing the delay? - How long are they likely to be stuck? - Do they have any documents or proof, such as flight cancellation notices or medical certificates?   2. Review Your Company Policies Check your company’s policies on unplanned absences. You might already have guidelines in place that cover this scenario, such as using unpaid leave, deducting the time from annual leave, or applying special leave provisions. If not, this could be an opportunity to update or create policies to address such situations more clearly in the future.   3. Consider Flexible Solutions If possible, consider flexible options to accommodate the employee’s situation. Here are a few suggestions: - Remote Work: If their role allows for it and they have the necessary equipment and a stable internet connection, consider allowing them to work remotely. - Use of Annual Leave: If the employee has any remaining annual leave, you could agree to extend their holiday. - Unpaid Leave: If annual leave is not an option, unpaid leave could be a fair alternative.   4. Communicate Clearly and Compassionately Make sure to clearly explain your decision and any actions the employee needs to take. Show empathy and understanding—being stuck abroad is stressful, and a supportive response will help maintain morale and trust.  5. Plan for the Immediate Impact on Your Business It is obviously difficult to plan for something that will happen without notice, but your response will be determined by the impact of the employee's absence on your operations. Can their workload be temporarily redistributed or is there a need for urgent cover? 6. Document Everything Keep a record of communications and decisions related to the situation - this may even include third party media stories of an emerging situation overseas. 7. Review and Learn from the Situation Once your employee returns, take some time to review how the situation was handled. Could any processes be improved or clarified for the future?   If you need help setting up policies for situations like these? Feel free to reach ou as I’m here to support you in keeping your workplace running smoothly!

Do you work on holiday? And if so doesn't that just mean you're not really on holiday? ⬇️ I saw this headline today.... "Forget working from home, working from holiday is the new trend." Is it? Do you work when you're on holiday? Apparently it's all about working a few hours so people don't use up all their annual leave. I understand the concept. It could work for some. Technically I could kind of do this with some juggling but to be honest if I'm on holiday then I'm on holiday. I prefer to be sitting on the beach with a book not typing on a laptop. Perhaps I'm alone with this? If so that's fine by me. Maybe instead of offering a few hours to work during holidays they could just offer a couple more days annual leave? Again I could be looking at this all wrong. Would you take an offer like this up or do you prefer to be on holiday when you're on holiday? Thoughts? (Oh and trend might be pushing it, it was talking about one company in Australia.) ⬇️ Hi I'm Lizzie. I'm a content writer for a company that provides practice management software to allied healthcare professionals.

I'm an entrepreneur, and I'm perfectly okay with working on holidays. I remember back in my recruitment office days how excited I'd get about having a holiday off, knowing I'd still get "paid" without having to work. On my last day before a “long weekend”, I'd set my out-of-office message, clear out all remaining emails, and make sure all the last emails were sent to candidates starting the new week. Having holidays off felt like such a treat. Wow, a three-day weekend? An extra day to hike in North Vancouver or take a day trip to Whistler—it was so refreshing. But you're probably wondering, what shifted? Why do I now choose to work on holidays? Before I answer that, let me clarify: I choose to work holidays not because I have to, but because I love it. I get to create my own schedule since I'm now fully remote and can work from anywhere in the world—imagine having an iced latte with your laptop at the beach in Mexico or sitting at the gate checking a quick client email on your phone as you are about to board your flight on a Tuesday morning. My office can look very different from yours. Working on holidays gives me the flexibility to take tomorrow off or even the whole week off. I can snag a cheaper flight that would normally cost double if I flew on the weekends or book that 11am yoga class I usually couldn't attend. It's these little things that I get to choose to do because I am my own boss. What do you think? Would you work on holidays if it meant having more control over your schedule?

Further benefits of planning appropriate cover for your annual leave: - Learning to delegate: some people struggle with this, yet it is crucial to grow as a professional. Plus it helps building trust. - Clarifying your responsibilities: Documenting your tasks provides a clear picture of your role within the team, to both you and your colleagues. Useful for end-of-year activities such as performance review, or for future hand-over activities. - Sharing knowledge: builds resilience within the team by ensuring critical information is not concentrated in one person. Good to handle emergency leave you might need to take in the future. - Supporting colleague development: a good leader lifts others. Train them to fulfil your responsibilities. Then they will be able to raise when you do. - Maintaining documentation: you very well know the available documentation is never up to date. You should take advantage of every opportunity to update and correct it. Collect feedback and improve it further. - Raising awareness: Everybody wonders what their line manager is really doing. Colleagues stepping into your role may better appreciate the challenges you face daily. Is this not worth it? #Holiday #Vacation #Planning #Leadership #GoodPractice #RaisingAwareness

The LinkedIn team asked me to share my thoughts on how to reset and restart work after a summer slowdown, or holiday. Most people use the slower summer months to take a break away from work, or to take advantage of the slower pace, as bosses, customers and clients are generally away holidaying during July and August. Some people return to work from their holidays refreshed and ready to hit the ground running. Others return tired and stressed, for any number of reasons. It’s worth remembering that holidays (originally Holy Days) were historically for religious, cultural and – latterly – secular commemoration. Additional paid holidays from work are a relatively modern invention, started during the industrial revolution. In 1871 the UK Bank Holiday Act enabled workers to take paid leave for the first time, but it was only in 1939 that taking a week of paid holiday became a legal right. Only very recently has the idea of work-life balance become an everyday expression, but most people still spend the majority of their waking hours at work. While I may be in a minority, I think the summer period is an ideal time to catch up on the many things I haven't had time for over the busy spring period. This can be hugely satisfying and rewarding, both for home and work tasks. If you are in the northern hemisphere as I am, then July and August are the perfect months to be up early with the sunrise, to make the most of the generally more peaceful daylight hours. Even if you are on holiday, it’s a great time to reflect and think ahead, rather than switch off completely. Thinking time inevitably requires a bit of peace and quiet. To plan effectively, I need to focus – away from the daily hustle and bustle of commuting, client/team meetings and calls – and endless streams of emails. That said, processing work emails for a short spell each day on holiday is a great way to avoid returning to the headache of a huge backlog. It also helps avoid the risk of overlooking important messages that require urgent action (holiday, or not), buried under a pile of others you are trying to clear from your inbox in the first days back at work. I find taking time away from the ‘coalface’ to plan also stimulates creative thinking, a state of mind that is easier to achieve away from the distracting maelstrom of daily work. I find this opportunity for contemplation and ‘blue sky’ thinking both relaxing and invigorating. It’s a great way to prepare, in a positive state of mind, for a return to work with a real sense of purpose, having laid the foundations for a more productive and successful period over the autumn months. These days it usually isn't too long thereafter before the pre-festive season season kicks in – after which there’s another opportunity to reset, recharge and prepare for the new year ahead. What are your thoughts on holidays and how to make sure you bounce back into productive work? I’d be interested to hear how you relax, recharge, reset and return.

As we approach the holiday season, it's crucial to find a balance between work and personal time. Our experts share valuable tips on how to avoid the fate of nearly half of workers who logged hours over the holidays last year. Stay productive without sacrificing your well-deserved break.

It’s holiday season! In the coming weeks, many of us will head off for a well-deserved break. But stepping away from work isn’t always as easy as it should be. Here are some tips about how to prepare for your leave and ensure your team progresses smoothly without you (and you can enjoy your vacation): - Find the right colleague(s) to cover you beforehand. Hopefully before applying for your leave, you already know who will cover each of your responsibilities. Brief them if required. Share any key documents or processes they might need to handle in your absence. Keep in mind you might need to request support from several people. - Apply for your leave using following your company's process and have a quick word with your line manager to ensure they know you have prepared for appropriate cover. Check with them that you have not missed out any responsibility related to potentially urgent requests. - As soon as your leave has been approved, book your calendar as out-of-office for the corresponding days. This will ensure nobody plans a meeting for which you are required while you are away. - You can also book a "free" meeting in your agenda and invite the colleagues who agreed to cover for you. This will enable them to set their own reminders and help them prepare for the additional responsibilities they have committed to. - Before going on leave, set an effective out-of-office reply. Keep it clear, professional, and include contact details of the staff that agreed to cover for you. Make sure you indicate what they are responsible for. You might want to add the most efficient way to reach you in case of emergency. - When your leave starts, update your status in instant messaging tools. Whether it’s Slack, Teams, or another platform, make it clear that you are away. You would be amazed to know how many people will notice you have gone silent, even if you do not usually meet in person. Some genuinely care about you. - When on leave, try to either turn off your phone or leave it behind. At this stage, you are not supposed to be reachable immediately, as you are being covered in the office. - With proper cover planning, the so-called emergencies that require your input will have a reasonable SLA that will allow you to call the office back when your vacation schedule permits. If they don't, you should have found somebody to cover for you. What do you think? #Holiday #Vacation #Planning #Leadership #GoodPractice #RaisingAwareness

𝗗𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝗻 𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗱𝗮𝘆?🏖️ I worked every day of my holiday and am not recharged. 😓 Typically, the week between Easter Monday and Friday is a quiet one in recruitment, well it has been for the last ten years. Because of this, I decided to take a week off to recharge following what has been the busiest, most successful start to the year we’ve had. 🌞 I live by so many sayings, one being,  ‘𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗵𝗮𝘆 𝘄𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝘂𝗻 𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀,’  and I am a massive  ‘𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗽𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗲𝗿,’  so I hate letting people down and missing opportunities. 🌾 On the Thursday before Easter 4 new roles came in so I just felt I had to work. As it’s Stress Awareness month, and we’ve been posting daily tips about controlling your stress, I’m very aware that working during leave is completely counterproductive to managing my health and stress, and the risk of burnout lurks in the shadows if I continue to do this. 🔥 I have to say I have 100% not set a precedent for working during leave and encourage my team to switch off, and I manage their inboxes. 📧 I am now on a mission to add another recruiter to our business so that I can hand over during my next annual leave. However, I know that being a business owner I can never 100% switch off🚫 𝗗𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝗼𝗻 𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗱𝗮𝘆?  𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗱𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗯𝗮𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗱𝗮𝘆𝘀?  𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗱𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘀𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗰𝗵 𝗼𝗳𝗳? 🛀✨ p.s. I have an amazing supportive husband (pictured) #WorkLifeBalance  #StressAwareness  #SwitchOff #traveljobs #travelindustry

Coming back from holidays (only for workers !!) 😉 Well it is true , good things do not last long! Time is close to come back to work. Here there are some human thoughts before returning at work after vacation : 1) I left lot of e-mails without answering my Clients 2) I do not bear to meet that colleague of mine; really we do not have anything in common, if I could I should avoid to stay in the office with her 3) I am happy because for more two weeks my boss will be out for vacations 4) I will take my time in an easy way; I do not want to be in hurry and ruin my good feelings after my holidays 5) I will provide some excuse to arrive late at work or leave before with a permission; it is not possible for me to become overwhelmed again by all the problems in the office etc. etc. To come back to work after vacations is a global affair and not really easy. How to "lighten" this return ? We can read lot of suggestions about this matter. Here there are some (optional and individual) : Firstly, my personal suggestion , if it is possible do not begin to work starting Monday.. I was used (when I was an employee) to begin on Tuesday.. then.. 1) write out your goals for the week 2) start with "me" time 3) prioritize your to do list 4) implement a "catch-up day 5) tackle tasks in Batches 6) start with the most Intimidating Task First 7) avoid meetings during the first half of the day 8) take your time If we were rich we should not work but in many situations to work is necessary to sustain family , life. Have you ever thought to change your work ? If you can, you can plan to change it using your natural gifts to "create" something that can fits you perfectly ( example you are good cake's maker so you could open a pastry shop); in Italy for example some comic actors, took an university degree as lawyer and then they changed their path preferring to make the people laugh! Life is too short to poison it every day ! Ponderate and welcome back to work 😁