This Christmas, give the gift of you.

Indeed, at the risk of sounding a touch John Lewis, the best present any of us can give this Christmas is our time – quality time with family and friends, time committed to charitable endeavours or worthwhile causes, time dedicated to our own mental health and wellbeing. Those are the things that will, ultimately, make Christmas a happier one for all.

But there is a commercial lesson here too. Agency life in December is notoriously febrile. A shorter month is balanced against a flurry of activity designed to support a best foot forward approach in the new year. Against this backdrop, it’s critical that we all stop, put our heads up, and think – not about ‘getting stuff done’ but about the value it brings – and the reception it will get.

Much as our time matters to the people around us, and to a happier, healthier Christmas, it matters to our clients too. In a world of MS Teams, and SharePoint, it can be all too easy to become impersonal in our approach. Just as no-one (well almost no-one) wants socks for Christmas, our clients want – and deserve – a year end that is wholly more personal. Pick up the phone and have a good old-fashioned chat – or better still, meet over a mince pie. Talk about the year that’s been – what worked, and - honestly -, what didn’t. Learn and evolve together, it’ll feel good.

As we pass the one-year anniversary of being employee owned, this is a sentiment and approach that as an agency we all feel keenly. There’s no last-minute panic purchases or relying on mum to buy the presents here. We all recognise our part in making this business successful – and the value that, as individuals, each of our time can, and does, deliver. Our values underline the power in people, the merit of creativity, knowledge and curiosity, and the importance of relationships – none of this changes, just because it’s Christmas.