Taking A Proper Christmas Break as A Business Owner

 As the festive period approaches, you've probably done your usual preparation. Client communication sent, handovers completed, out of office messages set, but there's one more important thing to do: give yourself and your team genuine permission to rest.

Recognising what you've achieved

Before you close for the festive break, take a moment to notice what you and your team have actually accomplished this year. The steady work of showing up day after day, solving problems, improving how things work, and building something worthwhile.

Growing businesses require constant attention and energy. You've provided that throughout 2025, often while managing uncertainty, adapting to change, and figuring things out as you go. Your team has done the same. That consistent effort matters, even when it feels like just doing what needs doing.

Taking proper Christmas break as business owner means recognising that this sustained effort needs proper recovery time. Not as a reward for good performance, but as an essential part of sustainable leadership and creating better workplaces.

Creating space for genuine rest

Making the most of holiday downtime for founders starts with deciding that rest is genuinely important, not something you'll fit in around work if there's time. Your business has had your full attention for the past year. The festive period is when you step back and let yourself recharge properly.

This means actually disconnecting from work. Not checking emails occasionally, not keeping half an eye on things, but genuinely switching off so your mind can rest. You've prepared well. Your team knows what they're doing. Everything that can be handled has been handled. What's left can wait until January.

For many of us, particularly those who are neurodivergent, genuine rest requires more than just stopping work. It means creating the conditions where our minds can actually settle. This might look different for different people. Some need quiet and solitude. Others need connection and activity. What matters is honouring what actually helps you recharge rather than what you think rest should look like.

Give yourself permission to sleep as much as you need. To read books that have nothing to do with business. To spend unhurried time with people you care about. To do activities that engage your brain in completely different ways. This isn't indulgence, it's maintenance.

Supporting your team to rest too

Supporting your team to disconnect over Christmas means more than just closing the office. It means actively encouraging them to switch off properly and modelling what that looks like through your own behaviour.

Your team watches what you do more than what you say. If you tell them to rest but they see you checking emails throughout the break, they'll feel they should do the same. If you're genuinely unavailable, they'll feel able to be unavailable too. This creates a culture where rest is valued and people can actually recharge.

Before you close, remind your team that they've done good work this year. Tell them you appreciate their contribution. Make it clear that you expect them to properly disconnect and that you'll be doing the same. Give them confidence that everything is handled and they can genuinely switch off.

For team members who find it hard to stop working, reassure them that rest makes them more effective, not less. Their best contribution in January comes from being properly recovered in December. The work will still be there when they return, and they'll handle it better from a place of rest rather than depletion.

What rest actually looks like

How to rest well during festive business closure depends on understanding that rest isn't one-size-fits-all. Some people recharge through social gatherings and festive activities. Others need quiet time away from demands and stimulation. Many need a mixture of both.

Pay attention to what genuinely helps you feel rested rather than what the festive season is supposed to look like. If family gatherings energise you, enjoy them fully. If they drain you, it's fine to manage your time there and protect space for quieter recovery. If you need structure and routine, maintain them. If you need to release structure for a while, that's fine too.

The same applies to your team. People have different needs for rest and different festive circumstances. Some will have caring responsibilities. Some will be navigating complex family situations. Some will be alone and might need that. Trust that people know what they need and create space for them to take it.

Resist the temptation to fill every day with activity or achievement. Rest includes doing nothing productive. It includes time that feels wasted by work standards but actually gives your mind space to process, integrate, and recover. This unstructured time often brings clarity and perspective that busy productivity never does.

Coming back refreshed

Recharging effectively during Christmas business break sets you up to start 2026 with proper energy and focus. When you've genuinely rested, work feels manageable rather than overwhelming. You have capacity for strategic thinking, not just operational firefighting. You can support your team effectively because you're not running on empty yourself.

The pattern of working through breaks, checking in constantly, and never fully disconnecting doesn't make you more dedicated. It makes you less effective over time because you're operating on insufficient recovery. Your business benefits more from having a rested leader for eleven months than an exhausted one for twelve.

The same is true for your team. They'll do better work in 2026 if they've had genuine rest in December. Better decisions, more creativity, greater resilience, improved collaboration. All of this comes from people who've had proper recovery time, not people who've worked through their break.

You've Earned This

You've worked hard all year. You've done well. Your team has done well. Now it's time to rest properly.

Set your out of office messages with confidence. Switch off your work devices. Be genuinely present with whatever and whoever brings you joy. Trust that everything you've built will be there waiting for you in January, and you'll handle it better from a place of rest.

Enjoy the festive period. Rest well. Take care of yourself and your people. You've earned it.

See you in 2026!