The Four Work Stresses of Christmas

It is December 14th, but the plants in my garden would
hardly let you believe it. Geraniums are still in
flower, roses are still blooming and my magnolia tree
has yet to lose a single leaf. London may be basking in
peculiarly unseasonal weather, but Christmas is nearly
upon us.

'At Christmas I no more desire a rose
Than wish a snow in May's newfangled mirth;
But like of each thing that in season grows.'
> Shakespeare (1564 - 1616), Love's Labour Lost

Christmas - that time of over-indulgence, added anxiety
and sheer stress. Bah, humbug!

Actually, I love Christmas. But the reality for so many
people at work is that hidden beneath the surface of
jollity and bonhomie is that it is potentially the most
difficult time of year.

The four work stresses of Christmas.

1. Christmas has become a giant milestone in the year.
This forces everyone into an artificial mindset that
demands that everything be completed 'before the
holiday.' As a result, the weeks before Christmas are
an absolute nightmare for many people. People who are
already overworked are forced to pull extra hours to
get work completed. Yet often, a moments thought by
those demanding the completion of jobs would show that
nothing bad will happen if they are held over until
early January.

If you are a 'holiday hurrier', spare a thought for
what is truly urgent and what is simply being hurried
because it is Christmas.

2. The social whirl. Just because it is Christmas,
everybody has to get on. And on, and on. Festive
parties seem to start as soon as the shops start
displaying tinsel - and that can be as early as
September where I live! If you are prone to suffer from
stress - as so many of us are these days - endless
eating and drinking in smokey atmospheres (even if you
don't smoke yourself) is just going to make things
worse. Not only are you lowering your bodies
resistance, but you are also severely limiting your
ability to keep on top of the heightened workload.

Don't be a killjoy, but equally, don't party yourself
into the floor.

3. 'What-haven't-I-done-itis'. When I worked for
advertising agencies, every Christmas was blighted by
worries of what I may have forgotten, what I may have
rushed and done wrong, what other people may have
messed up and so on. It was only in my last couple of
years that I cracked the problem. I made lists. Big
lists. I wrote down everything that needed to be
thought about from December 1st onwards. If I had a
newspaper campaign running I would call every paper to
double check the ad positions. And I would write down
the answers. I became obsessive about detail. And it
worked. On Christmas Eve I would make two copies of all
my notes, leave one on my desk and take the other home,
locked in my briefcase. Then, when the demon thought
sprang up during Christmas lunch that I had forgotten
something vital, I knew I had it covered - and had the
evidence to prove it to myself.

Funnily enough, just knowing that it was there made me
forget about it completely and enjoy my holiday.

The moral of the story is - don't plan for Christmas
Eve, plan for the days you will be home worrying.

4. Photocopiers and backsides. It might sound like fun,
especially after a few beers. Don't go there. That
glass can splinter! And even if it doesn't, do you
really want the evidence of a drunken moment to haunt
your career for years? There is always someone who has
had a few less drinks than you who thinks it's amusing
to hang on to the evidence.

Have a laugh, but try not to lose all your inhibitions.
A broken photocopier could be the least of your
worries!

'Call a truce, then, to our labours
let us feast with friends and neighbours,
And be merry as the custom of our caste;
For if "faint and forced the laughter,"
and if sadness follow after,
We are richer by one mocking Christmas past.'

> Rudyard Kipling (1865-1936), author, poet.
Christmas in India.

Christmas is a lovely time if worries about work don't
poison it for you. Try to plan ahead and have yourself
a very merry Christmas this year.