How To Build Your Business AND Take A Break This Holiday Season
It’s really hard to take a break as an equestrian because horses still need feeding and caring for whatever the time of year, and it is hard as an equestrian entrepreneur to take time out because you are always thinking about your business.
It is possible to take a rest and still grow your business over the holidays, and with a bit of planning and preparation you can let your downtime set you up for success and get ready for an amazing 2025.
Here are 6 ideas for you to try:
Reflect on Success and Lessons from the Year
Equestrians rarely stop and celebrate success because they are always onto the next thing, and equestrian business owners are just the same. This year, why not schedule in time to look back at 2024, either before or during the holidays.
What were your biggest wins? Did you land that dream client or host a successful event? Did you increase sales? Launch something new? Show up more on social media? Crack a marketing strategy? What were your dominant thoughts and feelings? What challenges did you face? What lessons did you take from the last 12 months?
Reflection isn't just about reminiscing—it’s about identifying patterns, refining strategies, and celebrating progress, however small. Note the key takeaways, and this will set the tone for 2025.
Let your content do the heavy lifting - Batch and Schedule Your Content:
Just because you are having a rest doesn’t mean your business needs to disappear, you can be visible without actually working, with some preparation ahead.
Whilst your audience might be busy ahead of the holidays many people are off work, and once presents are opened and the food is finished they are generally on their phones, meaning that they can be seeing your content and buying from you.
Plan ahead by batching and scheduling your content. Whether it’s blog posts, social media updates, or email newsletters, platforms like Meta Business Suite or scheduling tools like Later can keep your business engaged. You might want to consider a holiday sale, or crafted offers to your followers or email list.
Whether you are taking a full break or working some of the holidays, having carefully crafted content ready will lessen the mental load and give you even more relaxation time.
The Season Of Goodwill - Thank Your Clients
It’s the perfect time to let your clients know how much you value them, and get them engaged for the next 12 months in business. A personalised thank-you note, a small gift, or even a shout-out on social media can go a long way in fostering loyalty.
I record a happy holiday video, one for my followers and a separate one for my clients, and I really like to personally thank everyone who supports my business.
You might like to shout out to other equestrian businesses in the area, or other service providers who assist your clients. After all, we all want to help horses, so let’s pull together and support each other.
Embrace and Welcome the ‘Triggers’
The holiday season can actually be very stressful, from seeing family members, to financial pressures and an extra long to do list. It’s quite normal for this season to trigger a range of emotions that might not all be very positive.
How about using these ‘triggers’ as a time for growth, and to help you to show up for your business more in 2025? Instead of resisting, embrace these moments as opportunities for growth.
Perhaps it's a visiting family member who asks you, “When are you going to get a proper job and stop messing about with horses?” Ouch, that one can hit hard! We’ve all got that outspoken member of the family.
Or maybe it’s feeling overwhelmed or struggling to manage both business and family life.
Ask yourself: What’s the underlying message in this stress? What is the positive lesson I need to learn from this? What thought patterns or beliefs do I hold that are making this feel uncomfortable? By leaning into these triggers, you can turn them into actionable insights for your business, which will help your growth so much.
Watch the Money Stories
I hear a real mix of ‘money stories’ around the holiday period, which can have a very negative impact on the first quarter of the New Year. For instance, equestrian business owners tell me that “People don’t buy in December”, or that “Business will be quiet in January”.
If this is what you believe, then yes this is what will happen, but this isn’t true or real for all businesses. Many equestrian businesses have strong sales in December and January, and your business can as well.
If these have been quieter periods for your business historically, ask what you can do differently this year? How can you double down on your marketing?
What new beliefs do you need to take on about money? Staying aware of your money mindset ensures you enter 2025 with clarity and confidence.
Set Your Intentions for 2025
Finally, use the holidays to dream about the future. What do you want your equestrian business to look like a year from now? Whether it’s expanding your client or customer base, launching a new service, or building a stronger team, write it down.
So many business owners have vague goals like ‘grow the business’ or ‘make more money’ but these are actually fairly meaningless. I could send you $1, and you’d have more money, but that probably isn’t what you mean when you say you want to make more money in your business next year.
It’s time to dream bigger and get clearer than ever before. Then turn this into smaller actionable steps and attach timelines, so you can hit the ground running once January arrives. It’s the small day to day actions that actually result in hitting big goals, so keep checking in with your dream and micro actions after the holiday period.
The holidays are a time to rest and recharge, but with a little focus and intentionality, they can also be a springboard for growth. By reflecting on your year, scheduling content, showing gratitude, embracing challenges, and planning for the future, you’ll set yourself—and your equestrian business—up for a successful 2025.
Wishing you a very Happy Holiday Season!
Nicola
Nicola Kinnard-Comedie (Msc, BHSAI Int. SM)
is the owner and founder of NKC Equestrian Training, delivering horse care training to horse owners and business and mindset coaching to equine practitioners.
Nicola is a qualified riding instructor and has over 20 years industry experience, and now uses her coaching skills to assist equine practitioners. Nicola decided to combine her experience of equestrian science, sales and marketing, and teach this to others. Nicola works with veterinary physiotherapists, massage therapists, osteopaths and other equestrians across the world to help them build their dream business. Nicola's work focuses on harnessing the power of your mindset, together with cutting edge marketing strategies to support equestrian business owners to realise the business of their dreams.
You can find out more about Nicola here: www.nkcequestrian.com
This article is from the December issue of Equine Business Magazine
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