245: Holiday Business Boundaries: Protecting Your Energy for What Matters

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 Holiday Business Boundaries: Protecting Your Energy for What Matters

Holiday business boundaries aren't selfish - they're essential. Cindy Gordon shares how to protect your energy during the busy season without burning out or letting your business suffer.

In this episode of The Overwhelmed Entrepreneur, business coach Cindy Gordon breaks down how to set Holiday Business Boundaries that actually work - so you can end the year feeling energized instead of needing a three-month recovery.

Most entrepreneurs roll into November and December saying yes to everything: last-minute client projects, holiday sales, family obligations, and normal business operations. By January, you're completely drained and resentful. This episode shows you a better way.

In this episode, you'll discover:

• Why the holidays don't create stress - lack of boundaries around your time and energy does
• The 3 psychological reasons entrepreneurs struggle with boundaries (people-pleasing, scarcity mindset, and priority confusion)
• How to decide your holiday intention using 3 simple words that become your filter
• The 4-part Holiday Business Boundary Plan: intention, on/off days, in/out of bounds, and boundary scripts
• Ready-to-use scripts for saying no to clients, last-minute projects, and well-meaning friends who don't understand
• What "in bounds" vs "out of bounds" work looks like during the holiday season
• How to communicate your boundaries without over-explaining or feeling guilty
• Day-to-day energy protection strategies (email checking, notifications, laptop-free travel)
• Why discomfort is a sign you're doing something different, not a sign you're doing something wrong

Episode Highlights: "You don't need to push harder this holiday season. You need better boundaries."

"The holidays don't automatically create stress. The lack of boundaries around your time and energy does."

"Boundaries are not walls that shut everyone out. They're filters that decide what gets access to your time, attention, and energy."

"You don't need everyone to agree with your boundaries. You just need to decide that your wellbeing and your business health are worth protecting."

"You're not selfish for setting boundaries. You're being a responsible CEO."

Take Action: Ready to set Holiday Business Boundaries? Take 5 minutes right now: Pick 3 intention words for your holiday season. Decide your work days and off days. Write one simple boundary script. Put it on your calendar and communicate it to your clients.  

🎯 You don't have to figure this out alone! The Growth Collective is your $1/day business support community with weekly office hours, strategic frameworks, and entrepreneurs who get it. Less than your coffee, more than a mastermind. Details at https://exclusivelycindy.thrivecart.com/the-growth-collective/

💡 Don't forget to subscribe for more quick productivity tips for overwhelmed business owners and female entrepreneurs!

💌 Join 1,400+ entrepreneurs getting exclusive overwhelm solutions and productivity strategies straight to their inbox - sign up now! https://cindygordon.myflodesk.com/countmein

Connect with Cindy Gordon - Reality Check Method Coach for Overwhelmed Entrepreneurs:

• Website: ExclusivelyCindy.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/exclusivelycindy/
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@cindygordon

Episode Transcript

(00:00):
You don't need to push harderthis holiday season.
You need to work on yourboundaries.
Most entrepreneurs roll intoNovember and December telling
themselves, I'll just getthrough this busy holiday season
and then I will rest.
But here's what actuallyhappens.
You stack your calendar withlast minute projects.
You say yes to every clientrequest.

(00:21):
You try to be present for familyschool events, travel all of it.
And by January, you feel likeyou need a three month nap.
Hi, I'm Cindy Gordon, aself-made entrepreneur, busy mom
and execution coach.
I built and sold multipledigital businesses ranging from
five to six figure successes,and I've learned the hard way

(00:41):
that holiday boundaries aren'tselfish.
They are essential forsustainable business growth.
Before we dive in, if you arenot on my weekly email list, to
get productivity tips andtricks, we need to change that.
Grab the link in the show notes.
To get these behind the scenessystems that I personally use to
stay productive while running mybusiness.

(01:04):
Let me guess that your holidaystypically look like this.
You tell yourself you'll slowdown, but then a client project
pops up with a end of the yearurgency.
You decide to run a last minutesale because everybody else is.
Your family expects you to befully present and available, and
you still have normal businesstasks like content admin and

(01:26):
customer support.
So on paper you're off orslowing down, but in reality,
you're working from your phoneanswering dms between events and
trying to sneak in one more taskwhile everyone is watching a
movie.
You are not resting, but you'renot fully working either.
You're in that miserableInBetween where you feel guilty

(01:48):
no matter what you do.
This is a recurring theme that Ihave seen with the women in my
community.
They hit January, drained,annoyed with their business, and
needing weeks to recover fromthe holidays.
Instead of feeling energized forthe new year.
The holidays don't automaticallycreate stress.
The lack of boundaries aroundyour time and energy does, there

(02:11):
are three big reasons thatentrepreneurs struggle with
boundaries around the holidays.
The first one is peoplepleasing.
You don't wanna disappointpeople, clients, family,
friends.
So you say yes even when yourbody and brain is screaming.
No.
The second is scarcity mindset.
You worry that if you slow downor take off time, the money will

(02:33):
stop.
The clients will leave, oropportunities will just
disappear altogether.
The third is confusion aboutwhat truly matters.
Everything feels equallyimportant, so you treat every
email, every sale idea, andevery request as urgent.
Your brain is constantlyscanning for fires instead of

(02:53):
focusing on the things that areactually important, like rest,
relationships, and the coreparts of your business that keep
it healthy, long term, here'show to build a holiday business
boundary plan using four simplesteps that you can literally
implement today.
Start with deciding your holidayintention.
Most people slide into holidaysin reaction mode, so I want you

(03:17):
to ask yourself, what do I wantthis season to feel like?
Maybe your words are calm,connected, and steady, or maybe
they're simple, spacious, andjoyful.
Pick three words.
Those are your filter.
If something pulls you away fromthose words, it's a sign that a
boundary is needed.
The next thing is you need toset your on and off days.

(03:40):
This is where you need to stopbeing vague and get super
specific.
Decide what days am I working inmy business and what days am I
completely off?
Maybe you choose to work normalhours until December 15th, and
then move to half days for aweek, and then take the last
week of the year fully off.
There's no right answer here.

(04:01):
The point is that you need todecide ahead of time instead of
letting your schedule be decidedfor you.
Then you're gonna choose what'sinbounds and what's out of
bounds.
Decide what kind of work isallowed during your holiday work
hours and what is not.
Inbounds might be things likeserving current clients
essential admin tasks likepayment or customer support, or

(04:24):
two strategic projects thattruly matter for quarter one out
of bounds might look likelaunching a brand new offer from
scratch, saying yes to lastminute, one-off projects that
actually drain you orovercommitting to collaborations
that actually don't move theneedle.
Then you are gonna createboundary scripts.

(04:45):
Here are a couple ready to uselines that you can tweak for
yourself.
An example for clients, youmight say, thanks so much for
thinking of me.
I'm at capacity for the rest ofthe year and I'm protecting time
for current clients and family.
If you'd like, I can revisitthis in January for those last
minute project requests, youmight say, I wouldn't be able to

(05:08):
give this the quality attentionit deserves before the holidays,
and I don't wanna rush it.
My next availability is afterthe new year.
Would you like to grab a spotthen, let me walk you through
how to make your holidaybusiness boundaries stick When
the season gets loud, firstyou're gonna write it down.
All of it.
Don't keep the boundaries inyour head.
Write down your intention words,your on and off days, your

(05:31):
inbounds and out of boundslists, and your scripts in your
planner or notes app on yourphone.
Then you are gonna make yourselfaccountable.
You're gonna tell at least oneperson who supports you.
Maybe it's a business friend, acoach, a bestie, someone inside
your community.
I want you to say, here are myboundaries for the holiday.

(05:52):
If you see me, overcommitting, Iwant you to remind me of this.
This creates accountability whenyou're old patterns tried to
keep in.
Third, expect some discomfort.
Your brain will tell you thatyou're gonna let people down.
You should be doing more.
If you say no, then they'llnever ask again.
But this is just your feartalking.

(06:13):
You can feel uncomfortable andstill hold the boundary.
Discomfort is not a danger sign.
It's a sign that you're doingsomething different.
Let me give you a little bit ofbehind the scenes on my own
business.
I've had holiday seasons whereI've had zero boundaries, and I
said yes to everything and triedto squeeze in as much income as

(06:34):
possible and told myself I'drest in January.
What actually happened?
I hit January, completelydrained, annoyed with my
business, ready to burn it alldown, and needing weeks to
recover.
Then I tried it a little bitdifferently.
I decided my days off ahead oftime.
I told my clients that myresponse time might be slower

(06:56):
during certain weeks.
I chose one key project to moveforward and let everything else
wait, and you know whathappened?
Nothing exploded.
Nobody fired me for havingboundaries.
Revenue didn't vanish, but Istepped into the new year
actually excited about mybusiness instead of resenting
it.

(07:16):
That's the power of protectingyour energy on purpose.
If you take one thing away fromour conversation today, I want
you to remember, you are notselfish for setting boundaries.
You are being a responsible CEO,who's protecting your energy for
what actually matters, yourhealth, your relationships, and

(07:37):
the core parts of your businessthat will still be here in
January.
Okay.
After this episode is over, Iwant you to take five minutes
and do three things.
Number one, pick your threeintention words for this current
holiday season.
Two, decide on your work days,your on days, and your off days,
and put'em in your calendar.
And three, write one simplescript that you can use to say

(08:01):
no or not right now.
If you like these productivityand business tips and tricks,
please be sure to follow me onInstagram at exclusively, Cindy.
Now go protect your energy, yourfuture self, and your future
business will be so glad thatyou did.
And remember, you've got this.

Speaker (08:20):
Thanks for spending these few minutes with me today.
Remember, overwhelm isn'tpermanent.
It's simply your brain's way ofsaying pause and take a little
reality check.
If this was helpful, you'll lovemy weekly email tips where I
share the systems that keep meand hundreds of other
entrepreneurs on Track Link inthe show notes.
If you got value in today'sepisode, please share it with

(08:42):
another entrepreneur who needsthat reminder.
If you're loving the show, I'dbe so grateful if you could
leave me a quick review.
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Make sure you hit subscribe soyou never miss your weekly dose
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For more resources and toconnect with me, visit
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Until next time, remember you'vegot this.