Operations

Feeling Overwhelmed? You don’t have to!

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Does just thinking about your calendar or to do list give you anxiety? Do you have so much on your plate that you honestly don’t know were to start, or just put off starting anything? Yup – that is the feeling of being OVERWHELMED – but you don’t have to be. Being overwhelmed is actually a choice that you make subconsciously. Hear me out for a sec, because I know that might sound a little crazy. If you can train yourself to follow these rules below, you can eliminate that soul sucking feeling of being overwhelmed and start every day ready to kick some butt.

  1. Stop saying yes. I get it, there are certain situations with clients or bosses or family where you have to say Yes but stop saying Yes to the things that you really don’t want to do. Focus on doing just the things you really want to do.
  2. Get control of your morning. Having a morning routine can help you get your day started on the right foot. It eliminates the hectic, frazzled running around that just throws your whole day off and leaves you feeling like you have no control over anything.
  3. Block your time. Scheduling time for reading, working out, or just taking time for yourself is important. When you let other people control how busy your schedule is, you let them control how overwhelmed you can feel.
  4. Take time to access your day, week, month, and year. Reflect on what you’ve done. Did you accomplish what you wanted to, did you get joy from what you did? If you are just plugging through the day to day tasks but not enjoying them or feeling like you accomplished anything – then you really need to reassess why you are doing these things.
  5. Don’t just focus on the present. If you are always focusing on being in the moment and just crossing the next thing off your to do list, you may be neglecting your long-term goals and dreams. This goes back to #4 and accessing what you are really doing and accomplishing – is it getting you anywhere?
  6. Is it a priority? I’m totally guilty of this. Yes, there are things that must get done, but do they need to get done right now? Set your priorities and work your to do list in that order. If #7 doesn’t get done today, that’s OK, it’s not #1 and a high priority item.
  7. Set boundaries. Be realistic about what you can accomplish and don’t overload yourself. This really goes back to #1 and #3. If you don’t respect your time and what you really want to and are capable of working on, then no one else will respect your time.

Let’s be realistic. This probably isn’t something that you are going to implement in the next 5 minutes. It’s something that you must train yourself to be conscious of and put into place over time. The easiest way to get started – #1. Both in your personal life and your professional life. Saying No to the things that you really don’t want to do and don’t have to do should free up your schedule so that you can truly focus on the things you need to do and want to do.

Yes, unexpected things will come up, but if you are in control of your schedule and managing what you take on, you’ll be better prepared to handle emergencies and shuffle your schedule accordingly. Good luck! And if you have additional tips, I’d love to hear them.

Feeling Overwhelmed? You don’t have to! Read More »

Devil’s Advocate – Why You Need One

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You might think that a Devil’s Advocate is a bad thing, but it’s one of the best things for your business. Let me explain.

Scenario: A new project or service is being developed and a core group of people are going to be working on it. Sometimes the idea is the brainchild of a boss or department head, and they hand pick their team to work on it. They don’t accept ideas from outsiders, and they are certain it’s going to be the next best thing since sliced bread.

Outcome: They spends time, energy, and even company money to implement the idea and NOTHING CHANGES, or THINGS CHANGE FOR THE WORSE. They get some horrible feedback from clients, etc. Then you start to hear the grumblings from employees saying they knew it was a bad idea or that it wouldn’t work, or they would have done it this way, etc.

When you have a small group of people working on one thing over a long period of time, they develop the same perspective on what is going into the project or what is being taken out. They are all dedicated and loyal to what they are working on, but when the time comes to launch it, they are expecting, whether they realize it or not, for everyone to feel exactly the same way.

Sound familiar? It happens everywhere, and it doesn’t matter if the reason is that the people are too like-minded, or that the boss or leader of the project just won’t listen to anyone, or if the employees are just “yes people” and don’t want to rock the boat or put any extra energy into thinking about the idea. Regardless of the reason, it can be crippling for your business.

The idea of a Devil’s Advocate might sound really negative, but it’s not, well, not if they have the right mentality. As long as they aren’t focusing on just the bad things (a Negative Nelly), and they can offer some alternate ideas instead (they come with solutions, not just pointing out the problems), and they spark others to think outside the box, then having a Devil’s Advocate on your team is a win-win.

Here’s the tricky part though, the big cheese needs to be willing to listen. We’ve had several clients over the year say that they need a change, they are open to new ideas, etc. BUT at the end of the day, they just didn’t listen. They would buck every new idea with why it wouldn’t work, they wouldn’t get their team excited about the new ideas, or they would agree to the idea but then 5 minutes later, they are off on their own path again creating chaos.

How do you know if a Devil’s Advocate (DA) is successfully doing their job? In all actuality, it should be subtle. There should NOT be huge disagreements, people stomping off getting angry, or a project being put on hold until people cool off. A DA just responds to ideas by asking more questions. They ask What If scenarios. They offer some suggestions on doing things different – would it have the same or better outcome. They spark others to think about the actual cause and effect. Their job is to get everyone thinking. If everyone agreed all the time with the first idea that came up, I’m pretty sure we’d still be in the Stone Ages.

It’s how Cindy and I work daily. She might be the one who still signs my paycheck, but if I just Yes’d her on every idea, piece of content, or strategy, I’d never be challenging her or myself. It’s not about being difficult or pushing back, it comes from a place of love and knowing that maybe if we dig a little deeper or consider a different angle, something GREAT will be born instead of something that’s just OK. Now, we make sure we are always moving forward, because progress should never stop, but taking time along the way to make sure we are still doing it the best way at the moment is crucial.

Do you have any great Devil’s Advocate stories, please share, I’d love to hear them? Comment below or send me an email at jenn@staging.redbarnconsultingllc.com.

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Entrepreneurs need Alfred

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[NEWSFLASH] Not all Entrepreneurs make great CEOs and not all CEOs are great Entrepreneurs. People confuse the two titles a lot because in the small business and even in the middle market world the CEO and the Entrepreneur (Founder) are one in the same – but it’s a tricky and often tumultuous road.In fact, most Entrepreneurs don’t make great CEO’s unless they have a dynamic #2 working side by side with them. Alfred (CEO) to their Batman (Entrepreneur).

Here’s why: Most Entrepreneurs are visionaries, big picture, quick thinkers and are often shiny object people with a huge instant gratification trigger that leads to easy boredom. Entrepreneurs lead by vision and inspiration.

Take me, I’m a classic entrepreneur (right now I’m also the CEO but thank GOD I’ve got my version of an Alfred in Jenn). I love launching new businesses. It’s the thrill of it all. I love the plotting and planning, the dream of what could be and the launch. After about a year in, it becomes a rote process and I get bored and I want to build something new. Fortunate for me Red Barn Consulting allows me to do a TON of creative things and launch programs within the company. I’m no dummy – I’ve learned how to control my launch impulses so I can give my company time to mature, and I have a #2.

Effective CEO’s are also visionaries and big picture, quick thinkers BUT they have staying power and lead by inspiration AND process. The process part is HUGE. They are leaders with acute management skills. They can see the operational process mapped out in their brain and know how to put the right people in the right seats, protect the bottom line, and strategically take the company to the next level. Most CEO’s are more risk averse than entrepreneurs – they need to be.

Although I’m very good at mapping operational processes out for my clients and even for Red Barn, I’m one of the first offenders at not following the process. Just ask Jenn, she will tell you. Entrepreneurs aren’t the easiest to work for. We tend to get hyper focused on something and won’t let it go until we get what we want – strength and weakness btw. We also have a hard time with minute details, finishing tasks that bore us… the list goes on, but you can see where I’m going. Without a powerful #2, your business becomes a #hotmess quickly. Been there, done that.

Great CEO’s are deep thinkers, are fine with minute details and can stick it out for the long haul. Jenn is classic CEO material, I’m classic wild and wooly Entrepreneur. Neither one trumps the other, because both are needed for a business to launch, scale, and succeed.

If you are new to the entrepreneur world, and you relate more to me than Jenn, realize early on that you will need someone to run the ship. Find your Alfred.

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Client retention issues? I bet I know why.

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I often get calls from business owners telling me they need marketing because their sales have “dipped”.   I dig a bit deeper asking questions about why they think revenue and retention have dropped.  I get the following:

  • My competition is eating me a live
  • I need better employees
  • My customers don’t value me like they used to
  • I’m not competitive anymore
  • No problem – I just need marketing!

When I get these type of responses, it’s the red flag zone for me.  99% of the time there is a deeper issue and marketing is the last thing they should be focused on right now.

My next step is to head to their office – I want to be there first thing in the morning when employees are showing up.  I want to just watch, listen… and learn.  What I typically find is an unhappy situation, a morgue with Stepford Wife type employees who fake being happy there.  Where’s the boss?  In his/her office drinking coffee, with the door closed.  It’s Monday and there is work to do.  The Grind. The Misery.

In my line of work, the #1 reason most companies fail to thrive is due to their culture and the lack of a leader who understands the importance of TEAM.

When you hire the right employees into the right culture with a leader who embraces a culture of learning and mentoring– your customer experience will soar.

It all comes back to the Core Values of the company – the driving principals. The Ten Commandments – it’s how you act internally and how you project yourself externally.  When there is a disconnect with the Core Values of the owner and those of the employees – it becomes a hot mess and those dissatisfied employees become a cancer – which then trickles down to the customer experience.

If your retention and revenues are dipping – please take a hard, holistic look at your business and ask WHY.  WHY are customers not sticking?  It’s rarely because of price or your competition – it’s because of their experience with you and your brand. They left because they didn’t feel the love and someone else was loving them more than you were.

Employees matter.  Culture matters.  Most importantly, how your employees express your culture to your customers matters.

Until you fix this – don’t spend a dime on marketing. You are tossing dollars out the damn door.

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Entrepreneurs: Mindfulness Matters

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I’m a serial entrepreneur. I learned the hard way, that my lifestyle isn’t always unicorns and glitter dust (as Jenn would say).  Being an entrepreneur takes grit, patience, hard work and looking risk in the eye and saying, “Just watch me”.

To love what I do, I’ve created a mindset around that.  I understand that every single day there will be challenges – and that’s all they are, challenges.  Will I fail at times?  Absolutely – but those are opportunities to learn and grow.  I’m not going to lie, I don’t walk around gloriously happy 24/7, life gets to me like any honest human. The difference is I don’t get stuck there.  It doesn’t bring me joy to dwell on what I don’t have, or what I wish I could have.  I look at the possibilities and I’m mindful of looking forward.

Practicing mindfulness is something I learned that most successful business people practice – in fact it’s what most truly HAPPY people practice.

It took me years to get here.  I used to compare myself to others, long for this perfect company with perfect cash flow and perfect employees – thinking everyone BUT me had them.  I call bullshit on that one.  Perfection is not only a myth, it’s an evil gremlin that messes with many a mind!

With the help of hours of reading, and working with coaches here’s how I came to be in my mindful utopia I call my life:

  1. My Three Words. Each year I choose 3 words that will define my year. I live by them – mindfully.  I choose them mindfully and I work at it.  This year they are: Teach. Gratitude. Peace.
  2. I journal – I used journal ALL the time. In fact – I have journals from just about every day I was at UConn. (scary I know – but a hoot to read!).  Each morning I manifest the day I want.  So, it’s positive thought – what do I want?  I also write down something around my Three Words. See#2
  3. I have serious ME TIME each and every morning. 5-7am is all about me. I ease into my day.  This was a game changer.  I drink my coffee AND… either read the paper, paint, exercise – or even go back to bed.  Whatever makes me happy – it doesn’t matter what I do, except to “Just be”.  That time is sacred, and on rare occasion do I mess with it.
  4. I surround myself only with people with my same core values and mindset. Why be around people who stress me out?  That’s the PEACE in my three words.
  5. I am a constant learner – I read, have mentors, surround myself with brilliant people. The only way to grow is to learn.

Folks, when I tell you I struggled with never really being happy for years – even though I had everything I needed – it’s the truth. I was never able to “just be” and enjoy the moment. Mindfulness changed all of it.

If you are a business owner struggling to have that work/life balance – trust me, just try my formula or make your own.

  1. Take time for you
  2. Be Grateful for what you have
  3. Focus on what you want versus what you don’t want
  4. Be Mindful of your actions and who you surround yourself with
  5. Money is not the most important thing – EVER. It will come and go – your friends and family are what you should treasure.

Namaste

CD

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Side Hustle Nation – Take the Leap!

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In our program the Business Success Network, we love working with Side Hustlers – people who are working their dream gig on the side while holding down a full-time gig that they greatly dislike. (Trying to avoid words like Hate – they just don’t serve me)

If you are SERIOUS about making your Side Hustle the Full Time Hustle – then here are the steps we take our clients through.  I need to them to know the following:

  1. Be crystal clear on your WHY. What is your purpose – personally, and does it align with your business model.  If the side hustle is just a way to make a buck and you aren’t passionate about it – your business will never be truly successful. You will get burned and give up when the going gets tough – and it will, get tough that is.
  2. Ensure you have a viable business. Just because it’s a great idea, does not mean it’s a viable business model.  Perhaps your market is too small or too saturated, you can’t differentiate yourself enough from the competition or you have a time sensitive thing whose time is almost up.  You need to crunch the numbers and do some market research.
  3. That you need to be a risk taker. I don’t know one business owner who is risk adverse.
  4. That you need to have a success mindset. You must focus on the long haul and not get hung up on the bumps in the road.  You have to BELIEVE you will be successful.
  5. You have capital enough to survive without a paycheck for a while – because most of your $$ has to go back into the company – typically.
  6. You need to deeply understand your customer and their journey – how they will get to you, what you will do once they find you and how you will nurture them. What will their customer experience be like?
  7. Chief Cook & Bottle washer – If you don’t have the capital to pay for help, do you have the talent, will and drive to do it all?
  8. Are you open to coaching and learning? If you have a know it all attitude – you are setting yourself up for failure. Trust me – I’ve been there and it wasn’t pretty.
  9. Are you willing to fail – but more importantly, do you have the mindset that failure is simply an opportunity to learn and grow.
  10. That you need to spend just as much time working on your business in the beginning as in it.
  11. You need to be able to sell or have a process that sells your product for you – i.e. online platforms etc.
  12. Progress NOT Perfection. You need the minimum viable product to launch – it doesn’t need to be perfect, you can always adjust, fix and change as you go. Besides you need feedback from real life buyers!

 Side Hustlers, you can make the transition, and the time is really up to you. If you are focused on the end game, that transition will be far less painful than if you look at ALL you need to do and it will go a lot quicker.

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The fear of trying

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You’ve probably heard a quote like “if you’re going to fail, then fail fast.” I used to be afraid of failing, let’s be real, no one wants to fail. But working at Red Barn has taught me that, hey, sometimes you fail, and that’s OK if you fix it and learn from it. It’s a tough transition, especially if you work in Corporate America where when something goes wrong, it turns into the blame game. It’s a nauseating feeling always trying to cover your ass in case that finger turned to you. It became more than a fear of failing and more of a fear of even trying something new. But now, I’ve learned to embrace learning and trying new things because the fear of failure isn’t so stifling.

Before I started at Red Barn I had NO marketing experience. Sure, I used Facebook and LinkedIn, but that was about it. I’d never written a blog, sent out an e-newsletter, or used any design software. But I had to learn these things, and being remote, Cindy couldn’t hold my hand and walk me through things. I relied heavily on 2 very good friends – YouTube and Google. Trust me, if these 2 don’t know how to do something, then it’s not meant to be done.

I learned how to make updates to a website, edit art files in Adobe Creative Suite, create e-newsletter templates, create and implement Drip email workflows, the list goes on and on. Have I messed stuff up – ABSOLUTELY! Go ahead – ask Cindy – she’ll tell you. Most of the time I was able to fix any issues before they went live or to a client. That’s why we proof each other’s work – those extra set of eyes are key.

Here’s a secret that I learned from my mistakes and it wasn’t to stop trying! First – take accountability for your actions. Pointing the finger to someone else doesn’t fix the issue. Own it, fix it, learn from it, and move on. Secondly – follow up! This can save you a ton of headaches. Here’s a great example – We have a client that we schedule blogs for that post on a specific day and time. I send the link ahead of time to the client to share on social media and via an email to their clients. Well, I went in to check to make sure the first blog posted as scheduled and to my surprise – for some technical reason, it didn’t post! Had I not followed up, the client would have posted a dead link on their social media and in their email. I was able to fix the issue before it created a problem. It was no one’s fault, but you can bet I would have felt horrible if the client felt any negative effects from the error.

Trying new things is what makes my job exciting and fun. If I was afraid every time I had to try out a new software or implement a new marketing idea, I wouldn’t get very much done. Trying and failing is just part of the learning process. Sometimes you try things and get a win right off the bat – I LOVE when that happens. But most times you must try things a few different times before you get it right. It’s a process as Cindy likes to say. I play around with something, test it, make it live, test it again, make more tweaks, test it again, and so on and so on until it’s perfect. Another Cindyism – progress not perfection. Trust me, you learn a lot about yourself when you self-teach, and I get really excited when I teach my self new things and can put them into action.

So, my PSA for the day – Don’t be afraid to try things. Pull the trigger so that if you do fail, you fail fast and have time to fix it and learn from the mistakes.

If you have any great failure turned success stories, I’d love to hear them!

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Efficiency – is it a curse or a blessing?

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It’s often a running joke at Red Barn that I get shit done – and fast. I really can’t help but be efficient. I’m not quite sure if it was something I learned as a child or something I was just born doing, but as far back as I can remember, I’ve always been motivated to just get things done. Lately, it’s made me wonder if there is such a thing as being too fast, too efficient…

I can remember being back in the 6th grade and every morning we’d have an assignment that we’d have to start working on while everyone got settled, attendance was taken, volunteers would collect homework or items for the office, etc. I would rush to put my coat and backpack away, get out the book I need for the assignment, and work as fast as possible to get the assignment done, correctly of course, so that I wouldn’t have to work on it later or as homework. Having watched this pattern for weeks, my teacher actually said something to me about being too concerned with getting my work done. (Shocking, right! Well, I did go to Catholic school, so things were much smaller and a lot different than public school) So, the next day I volunteered to collect everyone’s homework instead of getting a jump on the morning assignment. Do you want to know what I learned – Nothing!

Other than my teacher, no one cared that I was the one collecting assignments instead of doing my work. No one cared when I got the assignment done as long as it was done by the due date. And the funny thing was, no one else took advantage of the extra time they had when they didn’t volunteer. Ok, I lied, I did learn something, but I didn’t realize it until many, many years later. I’m just wired different than most people. And for the most part, it’s OK!

I have come to terms with the fact that I just work at a faster pace than more people. I just can’t procrastinate – it’s not in my DNA. If I have a to-do list, I can’t relax until I’ve check off all the tasks. I love that sense of satisfaction that my work is done. If I can get it done today – I will. It’s just how I operate. BUT, I can’t help but wonder if my efficiency, and let’s be honest, lack of patience is getting on other people’s nerves or creating frustration for myself?

I sometimes find myself getting frustrated when it takes people more than 5 minutes to respond to an email or that it takes them 2 hours to complete a task that I know should only take an hour. I know, I know – who would want to work with me?!

It’s something I’m working on – being mindful of my time, other people’s time, and working on letting go some. I’ve started saying NO to things that I don’t want to do, more in my personal life vs. work. But at the end of the day, I can’t help but be me. In my defense, I do warn people that I’m crazy! But I also think my dedication to my to-do list, checking email, and be overall responsive is what makes me so good at my job.

So, the morale of my story is this – be who you are! My efficiency has made me who I am today, and you don’t get to be the Ops Beast by sitting on your haunches – pun intended! My apologies to anyone that I’ve annoyed or had to poke to move faster. It was nothing personal!

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10 reasons businesses fail

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I’ve owned a few businesses in my day. Some have failed, some have been (and are) successful.

The failing part sucks – no doubt about it. You never enter a business thinking it’s going to not be there in a year or two – kind of like a marriage.  But it happens.

Here’s what I’ve learned from my own failed ventures and from the myriad of business owners I’ve worked with over the years.

  1. Business Partners. When they work it’s beautiful. When they don’t, it can be an ugly divorce in the making.  Just like a marriage, you need a partner who has the same core values, the same vision, yet you need to complement each other.  There must be trust, transparency, and all partners need to be on the same page when it comes to running the business.  Have a partnership agreement that details who is doing what and how everyone is getting compensated.  Trust me on this one.  Many businesses fail because the partnerships fail.
  2. Capital. You need money to survive.  Cash is still King.  If you are thinking of going out on your own, you need to have cash in the bank for at least a year and/or some VC money to infuse into the business.  Without capital, it’s hard to grow.
  3. 3 P’s. Policies, Process & Procedures.  You can’t wing it.  Have a process. Adjust as needed.
  4. Cabinet. Lawyer, Accountant, Tax Advisor & Insurance Broker.  Don’t ever skimp on these – Ever.  Don’t think DIY is a smart idea – it never is.
  5. Clear WHY. You have to be crystal clear on your vision – your WHY. What are you bringing to the market? Why should someone buy from you?  What is your unique value prop?
  6. It has to be a viable business. Not all great ideas are viable businesses. Do the market research and test.
  7. The need for perfection. Go to market. It will never be perfect.  Do 1-6 – that’s just smart business, but go to market even if things aren’t perfect.  Your website doesn’t have to be the grand vision you have – it can be 1 page.  You don’t need a staff of 100 – start with 1, etc.
  8. Hire the RIGHT people. They need to fit into your culture and see your vision. Resumes and skills are second to their core values.
  9. You need to change with the market.  Innovate or die.
  10. Ethical. Now you’ll say there are a ton of unethical business owners who are making millions.  True, but they won’t survive the long haul.  Besides, do you really want to be that person?  Do the right thing.  Karma is real.

My first business failed miserably and cost me dearly.  The reason was #1, #4, and #10 (on my partners’ end).  It was a mess.   If you are thinking about heading out on your own. Call me first – I can save you a ton of headaches!

Cheers to us Entrepreneurs!

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Holiday Vacation Requests – How to Handle PTO When Everyone Wants the Same Days Off

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The holiday season is upon us, and in addition to all the food, celebrations, and holiday cheer comes the influx of vacation or PTO requests. Some people love working around the holidays – it’s quieter, less employees are in the building to distract them, and it’s a great time to catch up on some lingering projects. But let’s be honest, most of us LOVE taking a few extra days off around Thanksgiving and the week off in between Christmas and New Year’s. But as a manager, it can be difficult to juggle all those PTO requests and determine who should get the time off. After all, you do have a business to run!

I’ve worked for several companies who have tried different approaches to this conundrum and here’s some Pros and Cons for each.

Work from Home. This one is my favorite, but it doesn’t work for everyone. Pretty much everybody has a laptop, iPad or smartphone that enables them to work remotely. If your staff doesn’t have to be on site, letting them work at home during the holidays can be a productive way to get things done. Working at home is a viable option only if the business lends itself to it and there’s a way to ensure the employees are actually working.

Seniority Rules! For employees who are at the top of the totem pole this scenario seems like a great idea. After all, they’ve put in the years and years of hard work – shouldn’t they get an additional perk? In theory it sounds like it’s a fair solution – but if you have several employees who have been with you for a while and they always want the same holidays off as the rest of the department, it may cause frustration and friction.

First Come, First Served. Rewarding those who plan ahead can make creating your holiday schedule much easier. Determine the number of employees you can afford to do without, and once you have that number of employees put in requests – all other requests will be turned down. This puts the burden on the employee to submit PTO in a timely fashion. However, you should set a timeline for how early employees can put in a vacation request – you don’t want Susan requesting the last week of December off for the next 3 years now.

Do a Lottery. Doing a lottery system for the most coveted days off when all your employees want to take PTO time may be the fairest option. Have all your employees put their name on a slip of paper, toss them into a bag, and pick as many names as employees you can afford to be without.

Split the Days Up. There are a few ways to do this one. If your employees don’t care about having the whole day off – split the shifts into mornings and afternoon and everyone works a half day. If your employees prefer full days off – split up the week instead. Give Joe Monday and Tuesday off and give Jane Thursday and Friday off. Everybody wins!

Give a Holiday Differential. If it’s in your budget, offer a small hourly pay differential to those who choose to work the day before Thanksgiving or the days surrounding Christmas and New Year’s. It may solve your scheduling problem for you.

Create Black Out Days. This one is at the bottom for a reason – it’s probably the least favorable option and won’t win you any brownie points with your employees, but it is needed in some industries: retail, hospitality, and even healthcare. If an employee wants off during a blackout period he or she would need to ask well in advance, with a good reason, and it would be at the manager’s discretion. It’s a good idea to inform employees from the beginning of the blackout policy so they aren’t blindsided come holiday time.

Handling PTO request any other time of year is typically a breeze, but navigating the request during the peak of the holiday season should be handled with care. Not only can it upset employees, but it could also disrupt your company culture and your brand.

Becoming a better vacation manager is far more important than the challenges of enduring a temporary gap in staffing. Not only are employees entitled to the time off, but research shows that taking it is critical for both their engagement and to avoid long-term burnout. You can read my blog on that here: CLICK ME!

How does your company handle holiday PTO requests? I’d love to hear about it!

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