Is your team down in the dumps this week?

I've worked with a few retailers this week, done some shopping and carried out some mystery shops and everywhere I go, people are down in the dumps. It's not a great week - the weather is awful (and possibly dangerous  if you live in parts of the North) and the process of stretching your pay packet always hurts more in January.

After all the events and promotions of pre-Christmas and the Boxing Day sales, it can be difficult to get your team going for another set of events. However, I think that an event may just be what is needed right now to lift your weary team and their collective spirit. There is Valentines Day just around the corner but something could fill the gap. It doesn't have to be customer-facing - just something that gets your team going again. I've seen ideas such as-

• A "thank you" buffet for the hard work over Christmas
• A dress down day
• A bingo card for selling a particular product with prizes for a full card

It's about doing something rewarding, a little lower-key than the Christmas promotions and hopefully some fun. Think about doing something that lifts the spirits of your team - it's important for them to have something that takes their mind off the gloom and doom that's in the news.

It's also time to ramp up your colleague engagement at this time. Spending quality time with your team is another sure fire way of lifting their morale. It's true leadership to be there with your team, discussing the upcoming plans when you don't really feel that great yourself.

Remember this as we fight through the rest of January and you will be in a position to reap the rewards.It's at this time of year that people start to look for a new job or a new start. If you have put yourself in a position that your team are happy, satisfied and productive then you can head a lot of this off at the pass.Team members that are happy and recognised are much less likely to look elsewhere. This will save you money on recruitment and training for new starters, which is an unnecessary expense at this time.

Make sure that you know your team and everyone is as happy as they can be. It's good for business in the long run.