Don’t Waste the Quiet Months: 17 High-Impact Moves to Energize Your Team and Your Firm
By Jeremy Clopton
The pace slows. The pressure lifts. The inbox feels manageable for the first time in months. The team focuses on recharging.
This quieter stretch in the year can feel like a welcome breather. And it should be. Your team deserves a moment to reset.
But here’s the truth: what you do during these months sets the tone for the year to come.
Unfortunately, many firms treat this season like a holding pattern. They fill calendars with low-value work, hoping to keep people busy while waiting for urgency to return.
High-performance firms use this time intentionally – to move to Quadrant II.
If you felt your summer wasn’t as impactful as you hoped, this article is for you.
Here are 17 actionable, high-impact things you and your team can do now to build capacity, strengthen culture, and set the firm up for future success.
People & Culture
- Hold “Career Check-In” Conversations
Check in with your team members. Ask what excites them, what challenges them, what they want more of, and where they want to grow. Start to align opportunities and responsibilities with strengths and aspirations.
- Let Future Leaders Lead
Give emerging leaders full ownership of an internal initiative to get them outside their comfort zones. Don’t just delegate tasks, delegate ownership of the initiative. Real growth starts with real responsibility.
- Run a “Stop Doing” Session
Facilitate a team conversation about what processes are outdated, unnecessary, or inefficient. Eliminate low-value tasks that create headaches or bottlenecks to free up capacity.
- Normalize Feedback
Start using “Start, Stop, Continue” in weekly 1:1s. Build a culture where real-time feedback is expected. A culture of feedback is easier to build in low-stress seasons.
- Refresh Roles & Expectations
Clarify who owns what. Update job descriptions and responsibilities so everyone knows where they stand and what’s next.
Learning & Development
- Launch a Learning Sprint
Run a 4-week series of short sessions focused on high-impact professional skills – how to have advisory conversations, build executive presence, view things through an owner’s mindset, etc.
- Build a Skills Map
List the key capabilities required at each level. After letting team members self-assess, choose one skill to improve this quarter.
- Share Internal Expertise
Host “10-minute mastery” talks. Let team members share tools, approaches, or insights others can learn from.
Client Experience
- Reconnect with A-Level Clients
Reach out with no agenda except to listen. Ask what’s ahead for them and how your firm can deliver more value in the coming year. Use this as an opportunity to re-engage as advisors.
- Review the Client List
Identify ideal-fit clients and those who drain energy. Make at least one tough but strategic client decision now. Who will you upgrade, transition, or terminate?
- Create a “Client WOW” Moment
Pick one simple way to surprise and delight your best clients. Thoughtful is better than flashy, and much more memorable.
Strategy & Growth
- Recast the Vision
Take time to revisit your firm’s direction. Ensure the vision remains front-and-center in your leadership conversations. Bring it to the forefront of your full-firm meetings. Align your leadership team around what’s changed and what hasn’t.
- Test a New Service Offering
Identify a common client need and build a basic offering. Test it with one client and adjust as you go. Determine if you can take this offering to the broader client base.
- Refresh Bios & Messaging
Make sure your website, bios, and service descriptions reflect your current brand strategy and where you’re headed.
Operations & Efficiency
- Document a Key Process
Choose one repeatable task (e.g., client onboarding, scheduling, review notes) and build a simple SOP (standard operating procedure). Repeat weekly.
- Fix One Friction Point
Ask: “What small thing frustrates you daily?” Fix one. Then ask again next week.
- Align Priorities with Capacity
Audit your internal to-do list. Address anything that doesn’t serve the firm’s vision or your team’s energy. You can eliminate, automate, or delegate these items. Be intentional.
Which of these 17 will you implement? You don’t need to implement them all; even two or three can make an impact on you and your firm.
Because high performance isn’t built during the busy season.
It’s built now, when you have the space to lead with intention.
Need help getting your firm ready for next year? Reach out to Upstream and we’ll help find the best program for you.
