The SAD season approaches….

Interim managers often tell us they go into this partly from a lifestyle choice. The opportunity to work hard for some months but not all of the year can be very attractive. However, if you’re on assignment and have your head down working away, I don’t know about you but I find my lifestyle changes immeasurably as the nights darken, oh, and remind me again why the clocks go back (no, with small children you don’t get another hour in bed). Running home after work in the cooling heat of the day in summer is almost pleasurable, in the mellowing sun of autumn is a delight, but in the blustery, leaf-strewn chill of winter is never fun. Allow me a moment to moan. People are greyer, more irritable and there seem to be more of them on the daily commute. It’s a real effort to exercise or even to make yourself go out at night (although it’s still mostly worth it when you get there). Battening down the hatches in front of the TV/iPad seems infinitely preferable of an evening.

But the good news for industry is that I imagine we are probably more productive. No wistful gazing out of the window wishing you were in a park or on a beach, or snatched lunch breaks in a rare London patch of sunlight. And work feels strangely homely compared to the sight of wet and miserable shoppers tramping the streets outside.

Roll on the spring, but in the meantime it’s good news for British industry in my view. Does your work pattern change according to the season? I’d be interested to hear how you manage (or not) to maintain a healthy balance in your life.

Liz Sinclair is an Account Director at Interim Partners.

2 Responses to “The SAD season approaches….”

1. Iain Gosling Says:
   November 11th, 2011 at 8:15 am

   Possibly wishful thinking on your part. Work is work and deadlines are deadlines, whether you’re in bright sunshine or pouring rain.

   But pondering your point more closely, I think that it works the other way around (well for me anyhow). Summer is by far the more productive period. Waking up to bright mornings and generally feeling more positive leads to improved productivity, despite the thoughts of what to do in the long light evenings ahead. But at least there is a long evening ahead to look forward to.

   The winter months are I believe impacted by SADs or just a need to get through the winter months. For me your general thoughts are right, but summer months bring an ability to work and play for longer, before we all hibernate and regain our strength for the next bout of brighter days.

   In truth we Brits aren’t that impacted though are we? Should ask the Swedes and Norwegians, they are probably better placed to respond.

2. Andrew Sinclair Says:
   November 11th, 2011 at 9:06 am

   Hello,

   I have worked for a large Finnish company for a number of years in a permanent capacity and the country is, in my opinion, significantly impacted by the seasons but in an unusual way. In order to offset the short winter days in Helsinki and the constant twilight in places further North like Oulo, the Finnish population pretty much shuts down for the whole of July every year and there is a mass exodus to summer cottages in the archipelago.

   This has the effect of creating a false deadline, there is a huge ground rush feeling running up to the end of June where everything must be completed because of the Finnish vacation, complete business hibernation during July and then the associated awakening during August when the world’s other major economies are entering the vacation season. Net result, an outage for circa 6 weeks every summer. I have become adept at building this into project plans to minimise the risk of slippage and the company has been successful for over 150 years, so adapted itself and the industries it serves to this national habit.

   For myself I run a winter and a summer ‘background task’ list to take advantage of the opportunities each season brings.

   Regards

   Andrew

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