Christmas can be a lonely experience when you are self-employed.

After twenty years of corporate all-expenses paid ‘winter’ parties (so-called to for tax reasons, apparently) and the mad drive to get everything over the line before the end of the year (because of course, those issues will not still be there in January), the festive period can feel a bit empty and lacklustre when you run your own business.

There are no shared tins of Quality Street on the desks in the office, no one to share a cheeky long lunch with, and no nipping out for last minute presents (well, if your micro business happens to be in the middle of nowhere, like mine). The increasing fatigue as you run on adrenalin from hangover to meeting to hangover is absent. And you don’t cross the line on the 22^nd December feeling both jubilant at having achieved the seemingly impossible, but also in desperate need of a rest.

Rather, your month carries on much like the other months. You know you won’t be switching off in quite the same way as employed people because, well, it’s your business and if business comes knocking then you can’t afford to ignore it, even if it is Christmas. You’ve probably spent any ‘entertainment’ budget, if you had any, long ago and it feels quite self-indulgent to take yourself out for a slap-up lunch, when you could probably be putting that money towards some Google ads or similar. And as for the Quality Street, munching your way through a whole tin of those alone in your office is just fast track to diabetes!

This is my second Christmas as a solo-preneur (as one of my clients described me) and I’m realising that it is not all bleak. There may be less cocktails and refined sugar involved in the run up to Christmas, but I am getting comfortable with redefining Christmas my way. For me this means taking advantage of the flexibility in my day to commit to dipping in cold water every day throughout December for a natural high, taking the dogs for a walk in daylight at least once a day for a small fix of vitamin D, and nourishing my body with good food and lots of sleep (or at least lots of good books in bed with a hot water bottle). My average bedtime throughout December has been 8pm! In the olden days this would have been just when I was getting ready to go out to work party #24.

Another new highlight of the festive period for me has been the grand finale of our Winter Wild Swim Programme, without doubt one of my favourite pieces of work, ever. After meeting 16 strangers in a soggy car park in September, on the 17^th December I welcomed 16 wonderful women and friends into my home at The Forge for a celebratory feast. Watching these women blossom from nervous, tentative wild swimming beginners to confident cold-water aficionados has been undoubtedly one of the best experiences of my life. Feeling the genuine connection and community that has developed between these women, as a result of a nascent idea that Hattie Ballantyne and I concocted in a waterfall nearly two years ago, will beat the buzz of any corporate party or office lunch.

Throwing yourself into cold water and enjoying homemade cake with trembling fingers and enormous smiles may not be everyone’s idea of a work Christmas party. But for me, it’s what brings me joy and energy and festive cheer. And the upside? It doesn’t leave you feeling utterly depleted and exhausted, so you have plenty left to give your friends and family come the 25th. Plus, the drive and motivation to keep your little business thriving into the new year and beyond.