How to send your team into the holidays inspired, not exhausted

Regardless of whether you're a fan of the holidays or not, December has a certain atmosphere.

People are stretched thin, juggling deadlines, pressure, family chaos, and the countdown to "finally switching off." You can almost feel the collective fatigue in every meeting.

The year may be ending, but the race is not. And as a leader, you know that your team is running a marathon, not a sprint.

So how do you send off your team for a break and make sure they come back feeling re-energized and inspired?

A Ritual Worth Trying Before Everyone Switches Off

The cliché says: "Let's have the Christmas party, blow off steam, and switch off." But high-performing teams need something different:

• A moment to reflect

• A moment to recognize real progress

• A moment to reset the pace of the marathon

Then make #team commitments for next year: simple, human agreements like:

• "We ask for help early."

• "We speak up when pressure builds."

• "We protect focus."

• "We support each other, not compete for survival."

The commitments will come from the team and stay within the team, ideally written down and posted somewhere as frequent reminders.

Reframing the Tough Stuff

Your team does not need you to pretend everything is easy and wonderful. They need clarity and to believe that they can rely on you for support when the going gets tough (and it will).

Good leadership reframing sounds like:

• "Here's what will be challenging next year, and here's how we will pace ourselves."

• "Budgets are tight, so we will focus on what matters most and avoid noise."

• "If anything changes, you will hear it from me, not through rumors."

The Psychology of #Motivation and #Engagement During Year-End

People stay motivated when three things are present: autonomy, mastery, and purpose. This is the core argument in Drive, Daniel Pink's famous book.

In your end-of-year conversations with your team, make sure you touch upon these points:

• Autonomy: Ask them to come back with ideas on what they want to #work on next year.

• Mastery: Remind them of the skills they built this year and recognize their progress (not just their #performance).

• Purpose: Reconnect them to why the work matters beyond the metrics and how their contribution makes a real impact.

What People Really Want as They Say Their Goodbyes

• To feel seen

• To feel that the year meant something

• To know what they are coming back to

• Permission to actually rest

In the end, it comes down to how you show up. If you lead with honesty and humanity now, you return in January to a team that is rested, aligned, and genuinely eager to get back out there and keep running for gold.

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Sparking Leadership # 32: a weekly series on human-centered, sustainable #leadership. Follow for real talk and practical tools. In the meantime, lead with spark.