The Week Before Thanksgiving: Prep, Peace & Pipeline
It’s officially the week before Thanksgiving — the magical time of year when your kitchen becomes a command center, your calendar turns into a game of Tetris, and your prospects suddenly develop a mysterious condition called “Let’s pick this up after the holidays.”
And honestly? I love it.
This is my season. Cooking, baking, Friendsgiving gatherings, food that tastes like a memory… I am in my element.
We’ve got a couple of Friendsgivings on the schedule this week, and then we’re heading out to East Texas for a proper Southern Thanksgiving — the kind with real sweet tea, an aggressive amount of butter, and at least three casseroles no one asked for but everyone eats anyway.
As much as I adore this time of year, it can be chaotic. Between grocery lists, work deadlines, end-of-year targets, and trying to decide which dish to bring that says “I care about you” but also “I need something I can make in 45 minutes,” it’s easy to feel stretched.
So today’s blog is all about helping you find balance — between prepping, producing, and protecting your peace. Because you deserve to enjoy your holiday and finish November strong.
Let’s dig in (pun fully intended).
1. Start With the Spice of the Season: Gratitude
If there’s ever a week to lead with gratitude, it’s this one.
Not the cheesy corporate kind — the real, grounded, “I’m thankful I get to do this” kind.
Gratitude changes your energy.
It softens your tone.
It makes your outreach warmer and more human.
Try this on every call this week:
“Thanks for taking the time — I know how busy things get the week before Thanksgiving.”
There’s no stronger opener than acknowledging someone’s reality.
It sets the tone for the entire conversation. It makes you memorable. It shows empathy. And people are more open when they feel understood.
Plus, you’ll feel better too. Gratitude is one of the fastest ways to shift from frazzled to focused.
2. Prep Your Week Like You Prep Your Thanksgiving Meal
Anyone who’s ever prepared a Thanksgiving spread knows you do not just wing it.
You plan. You chop ahead. You make lists. You clean out fridge space (and pray it’s enough).
Your workweek deserves that same level of intentionality.
Here’s your Holiday Work Prep Menu:
✨ Monday: Block your core hours for the entire week; and I mean block it. Set calendar meetings for yourself that identify what to work on and when. Identify your “must close” and “must touch” accounts.
✨ Tuesday: Send your value-focused check-ins (“Before everyone heads out, here’s one thing that might help your planning…”)
✨ Wednesday: Wrap up loose ends. Send warm holiday notes. Close your laptop with zero guilt.
✨ Thursday: EAT. NAP. REPEAT.
✨ Friday: Light touches only. No heavy lifting. Ease back into planning mode for the following week.
This structure keeps you present at work and present at the table.
Because nothing ruins a Friendsgiving faster than mentally calculating your pipeline between bites of green bean casserole.
3. Use the Holiday to Connect — Not Chase
The best part about this week? Everyone’s a little more human. A little softer. A little more willing to talk about something real.
Your outreach should reflect that.
Instead of:
❌ “Circling back on the proposal…”
Try:
✨ “Before we all dive into turkey and pie, I wanted to send one quick idea you can use for planning in early December…”
✨ “Wishing you and your team a restful Thanksgiving — I included one thought for your 2025 goals below.”
✨ “I know this week is bananas — here’s a 2-sentence update so you don’t have to dig through your inbox.”
Warm. Respectful. Memorable.
And it works. Because you’re giving energy, not taking it.
4. Protect Your Peace (Like It’s Your Last Roll on the Table)
This week is not the time to sprint.
It’s the time to pace.
If you’re staring at your laptop between recipe prepping and packing bags for East Texas, I promise you this: you won’t do your best work.
Block time for:
Cooking
Baking
Enjoying the people you love
Driving, flying, or traveling
Quiet
Rest
Joy
Yes — joy deserves to be scheduled. Especially now.
The calmer you are, the better you sell.
And the better you sell, the calmer you stay.
It’s a self-feeding loop of sanity.
5. Batch Your Work Like You Batch Your Bakes
Multi-tasking is a myth.
But batching?
That’s the secret sauce.
Set up your week like this:
One batch of outreach
One batch of follow-ups
One batch of proposal updates
One batch of pipeline cleansing
One batch of prep for next week
Do it in chunks, not scattered moments.
Think of it like baking cookies:
You don’t measure sugar for one cookie, bake it, go do something else, come back and mix one more cookie…
No.
You batch.
You make the process work for you.
Same with selling.
Batch for clarity. Batch for calm.
6. Give Yourself Grace (and an Extra Slice of Pie... Seriously!)
Here’s the truth: Some prospects won’t reply this week. Some deals will roll into December. Some tasks will get pushed. It’s normal.
Don’t beat yourself up. Don’t carry unnecessary stress. Don’t talk yourself into “I’m behind” when you’re not.
Give yourself the same grace you’d extend to a friend.
Allow yourself the joy of the holiday. Allow yourself to be proud of what you have done. Allow yourself to step away without guilt.
You’re a human first. A seller second. And a magnificent multitasking Thanksgiving queen overall.
7. Time for Some Fun: My Go-To’s for This Year’s Gatherings
The best part of Thanksgiving prep (besides the eating, obviously) is getting to share the dishes that bring comfort, joy, and a little bit of personality to the table. So here are some of my tried-and-true favorites — the recipes I’m pulling out for Friendsgiving, road-tripping to East Texas, and everything in between.
These are the dishes that never disappoint, never come home with leftovers, and always spark a “Who made this?” moment.
Stuffing with Sausage and Apple
Final Word: Show Up With Heart
The week before Thanksgiving isn’t about perfection.
It’s about presence.
It’s about gratitude.
It’s about showing up — fully — for your prospects, your friends, your family, and yourself.
You don’t need to hustle harder.
You just need to move with intention.
And give yourself room to breathe.
Remember:
Confidence is quiet.
Presence is powerful.
And peace is profitable.
Happy almost-Thanksgiving, friends.
May your deals close easily, your meals come out beautifully, and your heart stay full in every way.
👠 Cheers to gratitude, grace, and getting it done.