7 Ways to Tackle November

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November is a tough month for productivity and work. The year begins to wind down and with a longer Thanksgiving Breakit makes the month pretty short. Here are 10 tips for making the most of November.

1. Get Things Done Early

You have three weeks this month to get anything done as it relates to work. You can write off the week of Thanksgiving if you need to work with anyone else. Even the week before Thanksgiving, people start taking vacations and preparing for the holiday. Make the first two weeks as productive as possible.

2. Save Thanksgiving Week For Yourself

While you will have a hard time working with others the week of Thanksgiving, it is a great time to get things done for yourself. Whether that means taking a week of vacation or working on independent work tasks, Thanksgiving week can actually be productive for you.

3. Disconnect

Whether it’s the entire week or the 4 day long weekend, disconnect from the office. The easiest way I’ve found to disconnect is when other people are trying to disconnect too. Thanksgiving weekend and, if you can do it, Thanksgiving week is a great time to think about yourself and your family and not about work.

4. Start Planning for December

So if November is a tough month for productivity, December is worse. Three weeks of work, then Christmas Week, then New Years week. Start thinking about how you’re going to take advantage of those first three weeks of December to close out the year. If you start thinking about it on December 1, you’re probably too late.

5. One-on-One Networking

With the number of personal and professional commitments in December, it’s tough to find the time or stomach to meet with people one-on-one. (Group networking is fantastic in December, FYI.) If you have a few people you’ve been meaning to catch up with, November is a great time to do that.

6. Think About Your Company

For a majority of businesses, the calendar year end is also the fiscal year end. As the year is wrapping up for your company, think about how you can make a meaningful end to the year. It’s obvious if you’re in a sales role — make that extra sale! To others, it may be finishing up a needed project or closing out some dangling contracts.

7. Think About You

With you corporate year end wrapping up, it also means that your performance year may be wrapping up too. I often see people sit down in January and try to back into their goals and objectives. You’re still not kidding anybody by meeting those last two goals in December, but it’s better than trying to figure out a way to convince your boss you did — when you really didn’t. Look over what you were supposed to do and if possible, try to knock something out before year end.

November is one of my favorite months of the year. At least for me, it’s less stressful than the holidays, filled with family and food, and allows me to take a week’s vacation (with only 3 vacation days).