Five Productive Ways to Take a Holiday Break

The holidays are a good excuse to take a break after job searching for three, six or ___ (fill in the blanks) months of job searching. While people do get hired in December, most companies spend the month treading water. It’s a good time for employees to take accrued leave that will expire on December 31, making key people unavailable for interviews. Even employees who are looking for another job stay put during December for the year-end bonuses or holiday gifts. Since things are on hold, it’s a good time to take a break and enjoy some of the season’s events and activities. Here are five Philly events that can be both fun and productive.

December 7 Komen Phila. P.I.N. Stripes Presents: An Exclusive Evening On the Trading Floor at NASDAQ. We mere mortals don’t often get access to the trading floor. Just being where it all happens is exciting enough, but this comes with the opportunity to rub elbows with NASDAQ exchange staff, experts and traders and maybe pick up a few tips on making money in the market next year. If you are looking for a job in banking, finance or the markets, this is a great place to network over cocktails and appetizers. Engage in some mock trading and get a personal tour of the exchange as well.

December 8 - Young Friends: Mugshots Coffee House and Cafe - Sustainability and Your Local Coffee Shop. What’s more fun than sipping coffee and saving the earth at the same time? Coffee is the new wine, and you’ll learn how to distinguish the subtleties of the different brews and learn how this small chain has successfully stayed true to sourcing sustainable ingredients. For members and non-members alike, ages 21-45. You’ll become a dazzling conversationalist on an intriguing subject that’s perfect for your next networking small-talk opportunity.

December 3 to 18 – Visit Santa Claus At Franklin Square - Bring your Christmas wish list (with a job at the top) and bend Santa’s ear with tales of how good you’ve been this year. On one of Philadelphia’s original squares, have some fun, food, and immerse yourself in the decorations and music of the season.

December 9 - Art After 5 - Holiday Klezmer – Philadelphia Museum of Art. Celebrate the Festival of Lights surrounded by art, enjoying jazz and latin Klezmer music along with Yiddish songs and dances from Israel. Leave your troubles behind and get lost in the beauty, culture and these timeless traditions.

December 10 - 2011 Running of the Santas Festival and Pub Crawl in Philly – I don’t know if there are any running bulls involved in this, but the Santas will be running again from Finnigan’s Wake to Festival Pier. Get your Santa on, enjoy two hours of free beer, make the three block run and enjoy the indoor/outdoor festivities with heated tents, live bands and drink specials. The VIP ticket is your best bet—access to all the events.

What holiday events do you find most relaxing, festive and networking opportunities? Share them in the Comments section below.

Mary Nestor-Harper, SPHR, is a consultant, blogger, motivational speaker and freelance writer for phillyjobs.com. Based in Savannah, GA, her work has appeared in Training magazine, Training & Development magazine, Supervision, BiS Magazine and The Savannah Morning News. When she’s not writing, she enjoys singing with the Savannah Philharmonic Chorus and helping clients reinvent their careers for today’s job market. You can read more of her blogs at phillyjobs.com and view additional job postings on Beyond.com.