For SMB Owners, There Is No Holiday Break
There’s no rest for small businesses — especially over the holidays.
For entrepreneurs, taking a relaxing holiday isn’t so simple, according to a recent survey of 500 small business owners conducted by FreshBooks. While more than 70 percent of respondents agreed with the statement “taking time off during the holidays is essential to my mental health,” half also said they’re not taking time off this year except for statutory holidays like Christmas Day.
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Across all small business owners, those who do and do not take vacation time, half said they feel stressed when away from their work. Only 25 percent said they will take a consecutive week off during the holiday season.
While a quarter of respondents said the holidays were simply too busy of a time to step away, almost half of the survey’s respondents cited the need to continue earning income as the leading reason for not taking a break. Notably, financial reasons were cited by 12 percent more women than men.
Unsurprisingly, given recent hiring struggles seen across all industries, a significant number of small business owners also reported not being able to take time off because they do not have people to back them up, with employees that lack the experience or knowledge to do so.
Although it might make sense for small business owners to feel especially tied to work during the holidays, the company’s report revealed that nearly all respondents carried this sentiment throughout the year with 85 percent saying that they do not disconnect from work at any time of the year and continue to work at some capacity even during vacation time. For many this means responding to emails, answering work calls and taking care of administrative tasks.
Importantly, FreshBooks researchers pointed out that in addition to the building stress over taking time off, small business owners (60 percent) shared an increasing worry about their businesses due to the economic uncertainty looming over 2023.
