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Yes. I couldn't cope without it. It's a good way to live: life shouldn't be all work unless it has to be.
Though it might be why I'm having such difficulty finding a landscaper!
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Interesting discussion, although personally I never 'close for business'.
A good many of the jobs my business does demand 'year round attendance', albeit on a fortnightly instead of weekly basis and ALL of our customers past and present know that we are ALWAYS at the end of the phone or email in case of a blown down fence or one off task that needs doing - often with customers 'saving' us work till winter or early Spring.
As regards and I quote 'funds disappearing quickly', this quite simply wouldn't be a sustainable business model for us, as costs are spread throughout the year on direct debit and credit agreements and therefore it costs us the same (bar fuel and waste disposal costs) to operate in mid December as it does peak season.
If your business model suits you and your financial and social needs, fair enough, although as you your self recognize it certainly wouldn't be for everyone and I know for a fact if we adopted it, we would instantly lose thousands of pounds worth of work just on two contracts alone...
I employ others so as long as they're kept busy my winter pot keeps us going just fine.
I am also taking some time out.
My mother passed away just before Xmas so it put my work behind sorting all the funeral and stuff out
I have now caught up with all outstanding work, so other than a few small jobs that want doing I am off till Mid February then weather permitting I am out doing the 60 odd Aeration and or scarification jobs that are booked in so far.
I am working around my own home decorating,tidy my garage/workshop, might even put a patio down, plus sorting web site and other business related stuff basically working on the business moving it forward.
This is also good time to give the apprentice time off.
If I wanted or needed work I could soon get the diary full but we have got to rest sometime, if you cannot afford to take time out ask yourself if you are in the right industry
I think there is nothing wrong with that approach, ie it's a 'lifestyle' choice. If you can budget to do and you enjoy, absolutely go for it :-)
The other aspect of this situation that is often discussed, is where this is (ie a winter shut down) forced upon a small business due to lack of work, because often with some planning/foresight it can be resolved.
For many, winter can bring in a lot of profitable work on allied activities.
It is indeed.
I spent Friday morning at business park opening "access hatches" in square guttering down pipes that had got blocked with leaf/fir debris and was causing water to cascade all down the side of the building and us :-(
The jobs we do for commercial clients :-) !
I take a good long break over Christmas, often all of January, but this year there has been work to do with the late autumn. Having most work on monthly contract means the money's regular anyway, but I always keep in touch with clients even if there's nothing to do.
Personally, I'd rather be out in the good weather 7 days a week when there's work to be done, and be home in the warm on the bad days!
Bloody woodburner is a real pain...often hard to drag myself away from it
Winter is the time for landscaping and clearance. All last week I was clearing a bank of bramble and a lot of self seeded trees, including a few Elm saplings which I've saved. Shared between a church and a house and am going back to plant shrubs in it next week. Good solid work which would have been a pain to fit in during the summer around all the regular work and other one off hedge trimming etc. that comes in then.
I find it hard to stop whatever the time of year, I get restless if i'm not at work, even if its pottering around in the workshop/garage mending and tidying. I generally take 2-3 weeks off from just before christmas to about the 6th or so of Jan but other than that its work work work, I can't be getting bored.
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