How to prepare for annual leave.
The Creative Diaries, Issue 3 – originally sent to our subscribers with their freebie on 4 December.
Hello beautiful Creatives,
Welcome to the final month for the year! Is anyone else feel little blurry around the edges, pulled in twelve directions, reaching for inspiration with one hand and wrapping up the year (and Christmas presents) with the other?
Same. It’s the season of the beautiful juggle … and the gentle unravel.
This is the time of year when most creatives and small business owners begin winding down, tying loose ends, finishing client work, and prepping their ‘Out of Office’ messages, yet our brains still act like it's mid-April and everything is urgent.
I’m writing this letter to you with a cold cup of tea next to me (I was meant to drink a couple of hours ago), a bunch of SD cards I need to sort and back up, and a photo of my husband Haavard in front of my screen––we’re almost at the finish line (crawling to it, tbh).
It’s been three weeks of the biggest content push I’ve ever done in my creative career. I’m tying up the last pieces of 2025 photography client work, preparing for our Australian Country House annual Christmas photoshoot, shipping my final batch of calendars, and starting my own end-of-year reset. It sounds like a bit of a grocery list – but everyone’s to-do list is, at this pointy end of the year.
So this week, I want to share something simple, grounding, and (hopefully!) helpful: how I prepare to step away from the business for a few weeks, and how you can create your own end of year wind-down ritual.
Nothing intense, nothing heavy. Just small, thoughtful steps to help you close the year in a way that feels calm and intentional.
This Week’s Reflection: the year’s end creative audit
Every December, I sit down with a cup of tea (and gentle music – sorry Mariah Carey) and I do a light, honest audit of my year.
Not a performance review.
Not a productivity scorecard.
Just a gentle check-in with myself, and my creativity.
Here are the four questions I ask:
1. What worked this year? Wins, breakthroughs, improvements, habits, clients, systems — big or small.
2. What didn’t work? What drained you? What could be simplified, automated, or released?
3. What did I learn? Creatively, professionally, spiritually, personally.
4. What do I want to take into next year – and what can stay in 2026? Not resolutions, just intentions. This practice alone cuts my overwhelm in half. It reminds me that ending the year isn’t about finishing everything. It’s about finishing well.
How I wind down the final three weeks of the year:
Here’s a peek behind the scenes at how I structure my final stretch before my annual leave:
Week 1: Clearing the Decks
→ Complete remaining client work (gallery deliveries and final edits)
→ Work on remaining open tasks on my Trello Boards
→ Write content (like The Creative Diaries!) and any blogs to schedule
Week 2: Systems + Strategy Light Touch
→ Back up files and SD cards
→ Organise content and digital clutter (desktops, camera rolls, downloads folder)
→ Review my recurring subscriptions – are there any I don’t need?
→ Send final invoices + reconcile my Xero
Week 3: Soft Landing
→ Set my out-of-office emails
→ Go through my emails & reply to any I’ve missed
→ Prep any schedule social posts (just the essentials)
→ Tidy my photography studio, my home office + reset my desk
→ Write a note to myself for January: ‘Here’s where you left off’
The last month of the year carries a lot of tiredness, overwhelm, and reflection – but also equal opportunities for joy, connection and a long-awaited period for rest waiting at the end of the finish line. Wherever you are right now, whatever you’re feeling, you’re doing so well.
December isn’t a test, it’s a transition.
Let your year close gently, and let this be the beginning of your exhale.
Until next week,
G x
This Week’s Creative Prompt
In one sentence each:
→ What are you proud of this year?
→ What are you ready to release?
→ What felt aligned?
→ What felt heavy?
→ What do you want next year to feel like?
Stick it to your wall. Write it in your journal. Let it guide your final month of the year.
