This time of year is notoriously hectic. From holiday gatherings to finding the perfect gift for your great aunt to keeping up with Elf on the Shelf, it’s tough to manage your client workload, too! Whether you’re taking an extended holiday break like we chatted about yesterday, or you’re working through the holiday season, it takes a certain amount of grace and patience to navigate client expectations during this time of year.

As service providers, our work often depends on the feedback and participation of our clients. So how do we manage their expectations if they’re hard to reach during their Christmas festivities, or if we plan on stepping away from our inboxes for any length of time? Let’s chat candidly about how we can set realistic expectations for both ourselves and our clients during the most wonderful time of the year.

Communicate effectively

Every scenario is different. You might plan on taking some time off or your client might be the one who’s putting up their autoresponder. Either way, delayed response times and out-of-office days make it challenging to stay on schedule.

If you plan on being out of reach during the holidays, let your clients know well in advance so you two can plan, together, how this will impact your project timeline. On the flipside, if your client lets you know (hopefully in advance) that they’ll be traveling or away from their inbox during the holidays, respond with a revised plan of action that lets them know how you two can accommodate that change in scheduling.

Be realistic

Although neither you nor your client will be out of touch during the holidays, it’s almost a given that response times are delayed this time of year. Even the most dedicated of clients can take 48-72 hours to respond to an email when they’re navigating holiday parties, work deadlines and their own family celebrations.

With that in mind, set realistic goals for what you can accomplish during this season. Overestimate project timelines with any due dates around the holidays themselves so you can hopefully underpromise and overdeliver. At the very least, you’ll still be on time.

Set deadlines

As you set those realistic goals for your client work, be sure you’re setting doable deadlines, too. Especially in hectic seasons, having concrete dates to refer back to can let your client know what’s expected of them, and what they can expect from you. And when they can expect it!

Look forward to 2017

Chances are you won’t be able to wrap up every client project before the holidays are upon us. If that’s the case, communicate clearly what is left to do with your individual clients after the holidays. This will put their mind at ease over what’s left to accomplish, and it will give both of you tangible things to look forward to in 2017.

Personally, I like to approach this conversation by outlining what exciting tasks my clients and I will work on at the beginning of January when we’re feeling refreshed and invigorated to dive into 2017. Rather than focusing on what we failed to complete before Christmas, we can excitedly look forward to what we get to accomplish after New Years!

Stick to your Guns

It’s tempting to sneak a peek at your inbox while you’re watching Elf with your family, or to work on a client project (just a little bit!) on Christmas Eve. Instead of giving into the fear that your work will never be done unless you work on it right this hot second, remind yourself that if you don’t respect your boundaries, no one else will either.

Your inbox, your workload, and your client roster will still be there after you enjoy a joyful holiday dinner with those you love most. Give them, and yourself, the gift of a fully present holiday as you stick to your guns, respect your own boundaries, and dive back into your workload after the holiday.