Kelly's Korner - Holiday Hassles (and how not to make it so)

Hey, All!

Ok, Halloween is over and it is now time to officially start planning "THE HOLIDAYS"!!!  Get your groaning over because, like it or not, they are here.

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I find planning helps out a lot - lists, lists, lists!  And a huge calendar.  First, I mark dates and times of events I have to be at or other special days.  Kids' school concerts, birthdays (yes, there are a bunch of us that have birthdays during the holiday season - we don't like it either), holiday parties, and anything else you've go going on.  This way you know what dates are taken.  Or if you are more technically savvy than I am, put it on your phone - then you won't forget the list at home (my personal favorite trick)!

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Then get with your family and plan who's where and what to bring.  Our family holidays are potluck and everyone brings something - appetizers, side dishes, desserts, beverages - plan it out.  Facebook messaging is great for this - that way everyone sees what the other is bringing and no one is left out.  Gets you a head count, too.

Get your gift lists together and start shopping - every time you go out pick up something.  Or go online and get things ordered.  If it is ok with your employer, have gifts delivered to your work - that way the kids (including spouses) don't get curious and into things they shouldn't.  As they come in or purchased - WRAP THEM!  Saves staying up till three in the morning Christmas Eve doing it.  Also, save yourself a lot of shipping costs for those out-of-town gifts and shop online and have it sent directly to the giftee.  In-store pick-up and layaway are also good.

Get your grocery list together and start picking up the non-perishable or frozen stuff when ever you hit the grocery store.  Saves a lot of hassle of holiday crowds and not forgetting the small stuff - whip cream, cranberry sauce, etc.

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Get any appointments you need to fix your appliances - technicians are VERY busy this time of year.  New drip pans for your stove, change your water filter on the fridge, anything you've been meaning to do.  Most of all - do not use your self-clean feature on your stove this close to the holidays!  Using this feature may blow a board and getting it fixed before the holidays is tough if not close to impossible.

Most of all - don't let the holiday stress get to you!  Schedule times for relaxing and for your family.  Have fun not headaches!

Have a great week!

Under the Weather

On the Mend
 (Flickr user Robert Couse-Baker/CC)

Over the last few weeks, I have been fighting a battle with the flu that led me to pneumonia. Not a pretty picture. Reflecting during my recovery, a few thoughts came to mind.

It may seem like I am about to give a lecture on immunization. I'm not. W.L. May is an appliance parts company. We are professionals at appliances and their parts, but when it comes to medical advice, I will leave that up to the professionals in the medical community.

Being off the job for any length of time is always challenging. It becomes more so when you really have no notice.

I have long been an advocate of periodic down town to charge your batteries and keep your enthusiasm levels high. Generally, that means vacations. Vacations can be quite do-able with some preparation.

Similarly, if you were to be taken down for a few weeks due to illness, good preparation can help minimize the impact. In a perfect world, you might have co-workers that can step up and take up the slack.

If you are a "one man show" you may have to be a little more creative. This is where having a bit of a savings account can be helpful. A common recommendation is to have 3-6 months worth of wages in savings to account for "rainy days". By now, a lot of you may be rolling your eyes thinking that just paying the bills doesn't leave room for saving.

I understand. A dollar just doesn't stretch as far as it used to, Remember that bit about co workers taking up the slack? Maybe there is another servicer in your area that would be willing to give a hand. Consider cultivating relationships like that when you are healthy.

How do you handle unexpected absences? As a guy who has always been a worker bee and not a business owner, I can only comment on what I see others doing. What do you do? We'd love it if you shared your ideas in the comments.

One last thing, while you are healthy take a moment. Give your loved ones a hug let them know how important they are to you.

Stay healthy, we are all in this together.

Vacation Planning

Photo courtesy of Boston Public Library

When was the last time you gave yourself a vacation? Studies show that time off can increase productivity, problem solving skills, creativity, and enthusiasm for your job. This is as true when you run the business as when you are a worker at the business. As the owner of a company it is hard to leave things behind to take time off, it can be easier if you prepare in advance for that time off.

As this goes to post, I am on vacation. When I was planning my time off, I took into consideration that this is a traditionally slow-ish time of year. Considering my calendar and previous years mean that I can try to take off time when it will (hopefully) have the least impact on my clients and co-workers.

Another kind of vacation planning

I do both social media and am a parts expert at W.L. May. Like many of you, I wear a few different hats. Starting with social media, one of the ways that I prepared was to write and schedule my blog posts before I am off the clock. I use the Blogger software for this  blog and it has a schedule feature that will allow you to post articles to be published at any time I request. This allows me to prepare blog posts to appear while I am away. 

To prepare my social media, I could schedule Facebook posts and Twitter tweets using a service like HootSuite or Buffer. If I were to take that approach I would not truly be able to disconnect because I would want to keep an eye on those pages to stay involved with any interactions on those pages. To allow me to fully disconnect while away, I am using teamwork and having those sites monitored by a team member (Kelly in this case). This is the approach I would recommend, if possible, since the less interactions performed remotely, the more you are actually spending time AWAY from your business, which is how to maximize the effects of your time away.

That covers the blogging and social media side of my job, but I am a parts guy in addition to being a blogger. The parts side of the equation also takes some preparation. To my mind, the most important thing is letting my regular clients know that I will be away so that it does not come as a surprise if they call and I am not here. W.L. May is a team oriented company and our parts people have a "go-to" person that we can suggest our clients speak to when we are away (Todd in this case). This allows for coverage, in the case of vacation or illness, with a parts expert that our client already has some experience working with. You may notice, I have 2 people helping to cover for me, this helping to spread the work around a little bit with the goal of minimizing the impact to both my clients and my co-workers. 

One of the best things about a vacation-Coming home!

While away, other regular daily duties are handled by the "go-to" person as well. I met with my back up before leaving to advise of any unusual circumstances that might arise during my absence. Is this all overkill? Maybe, but it leaves my clients and co-workers prepared for me to be gone. Using these techniques, I am more comfortable leaving things in the hands of someone else while I am away and I have found that when I return, things fall back into place quickly. 

Of course, you may have other steps to take before you can take off-we would love to hear what YOU do to prepare for time off. Let us know in the comments section. However you go about making time off happen for you, I urge you to do those things. You might well find yourself happier, more efficient, and more profitable after taking a little time to recharge.

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