1. Simplify expectations – Choose 3 daily “non-negotiables” and drop the rest temporarily.
2. Discuss the pressures – A short “What’s weighing on you today?” or “What can we change to help take some of the pressure off?” opens conversations people are waiting to have.
3. Reduce emotional carryover – After a difficult interaction, take 60 seconds to reset (breath/stretch/drink some water…) before tackling the next.
If your team is already feeling the festive-season strain, reach out. Sometimes the shift they need isn’t more effort – it’s more support.
Behind every “I’m fine” there is someone barely keeping it together.
Over the years, working with teams in the automotive, manufacturing, financial services, and logistics sectors, I’ve seen a pattern repeat itself every festive season.
The workload doesn’t just increase – the emotional weight does too.
A sales consultant might still hit the phones.
A customer service agent might still follow the script.
A teamleader might still check the boxes.
But underneath, they’re tired, stretched, and quietly overwhelmed.
In one automotive team I worked with, the year-end rush created so much pressure that small misunderstandings turned into full-blown conflicts. A single delayed handover sparked a chain of frustration – sales blamed logistics, logistics blamed admin, and everyone blamed the deadlines.
The truth? It wasn’t because of incompetence – It was capacity fatigue
Research from the American Psychological Association (APA) shows that 82% of employees report heightened stress during peak seasons, and decision quality drops sharply under emotional overload.
And this is not because people don’t care – but because they’re running on fumes.
When pressure peaks, try these