Working on "Quiet" Days

I went to work on Friday, December 26th.  I knew there would not be very many people there.  Of the nine people who report to me, only three went into work on Friday.  Other departments had similar turn out.

I rarely, if ever, take these days off.  While most people take the day off in order to take advantage of the long holiday, I see it as one of the best days to actually go into work. There are several reasons I enjoy going in on these types of days

• Traffic is extremely light.  Makes a big difference when you live in Los Angeles


• There is nobody around to bother me, so I can actually get work done


• I don't have any meetings to go to.  Once again, I can get work done


• Work these days is definitely easier.  Long lunches are the norm


• Workers are almost always dismissed early on these days

For the most part, the last two do not really effect me since I can always take long lunches and I can always leave when I want to, but it is nonetheless nice to have days where expectations are low.  For me, it is extremely important that I get some time this year to actually focus and do work.  I have a bunch of reviews to do this year, many of which I am not prepared for because I was not the manager for most of these people for most of the year.  I am the type of person who likes to have really good and accurate reviews for his employees but this year will prove challenging and I need all the time I can get to write these reviews.

Hope everyone is having a Happy Holidays.  Only a few more days till 2009!  How are you spending the last few days?