You can bet that Santa puts his oxygen mask on first – so many people depend on him that he has no choice but to look after himself.
Leaders also need to look after themselves first during the holiday season, so they have the capacity to understand and support their teams as they face stressors outside of work that are higher than normal. Increased social gatherings, family meals and events, kid’s concerts, expenses etc. all can lead to higher stress, exhaustion and even burnout. These people need understanding and possibly support.
The HBR chart shown to the right (HBR – 12 Elements of Emotional Intelligence) indicates that we need Self-Awareness and Self-Management to allow us to have Social Awareness (be able to recognize who is under higher levels of stress) and only then can we practice Relationship Management (listening, coaching and providing other means of support).
The pre-cursor to these 4 Domains is Self-Care. If you are not looking after yourself, you can not be truly self-aware and self-managed, never mind supporting others. It is critical that during the holiday season you practice whatever it is that keeps you on track: exercise, meditating, journaling, reading etc.
To have time to take care of yourself, you will likely need to say No to more requests than you would like to during a season that is more often associated with saying Yes. Be rigorous with your schedule and keep time carved out for yourself during this busy time. If you have a partner or spouse keep them informed of your intentions so they can support you, rather than be surprised when you say No to things you might normally say Yes to.
There is no more important time of the year to deliver the leadership and support that defines you, so say No when you need to, so you can say Yes to what really matters.
