The days after Christmas can often be slow days in the office especially if people have taken the rest of the year off and aren’t getting back until the new year.

If you’re a job searcher or are thinking of looking for a new job, today, tomorrow and the day after can be great days to touch base with hiring managers and short of that with staff who work in companies you’re interested to work for since chances are many of them are working short hours and in many cases are working casually until January 2 hits.

People are on vacation mode even if they’re not on vacation.

It’s a good time to speak with people who work in companies that interest you because chances are many don’t have a lot to do right now and given the happy time of year we’re in, are possibly more likely to speak with you and tell you about their job and the company, information you can use to figure out if you’d really like to work there.

You might be surprised how open people can be when you simply call them up and ask them questions and ask for their advice. In general terms, people like to talk about themselves and when asked politely, most people will at least try to lift a finger and help you out.

I’ve called into companies and spoken to people who wouldn’t know who I was if they ran me over in their car. I’ve told them about a job I had available, and asked them who they knew who might be interested in the job. I’ve left voice messages like this and had people call me back to refer me to someone. People do like to help when asked politely.

Again, this is a good time of year, people in many companies are working short hours, getting ready for New Year’s so it’s a good time to get their attention.

Plus, once January 1 hits and everyone is pretending to fulfill their new year’s resolutions, that’s when everyone else who has decided to look for a new job will start bombarding these same hiring managers with phone calls and emails. Beat them to the punch.

With December starting, you’ve got 31 days – including today – left to get some stuff done.

Actually, you’ve got less than that because depending on where you live, December 25 (and possibly the 26th) are holidays, you’ll probably leave work early on the 24th and 31st and chances are you’ll be spending much of the first part of December shopping and probably attending various Christmas/holiday parties which you’ll then need time to recover from, too.

Plus, December can be a slow time of the year anyways. Some companies virtually close up shop the moment December 1 hits and you probably work with at least one person who takes all of December off on vacation and wonder how they managed to bank all that vacation time?

Here are a couple of things to do before the end of the year:

1. Use up your benefits: If your health benefits run on a calendar year, call up your provider and see how much you have left before the new year starts. Visit the dentist and get those new contact lenses or glasses. Make sure you take advantage of what you’re entitled to especially if you need it. Personally, I’m off to the dentist tomorrow.

2. Dust off your resume: I mention this frequently but always keep you resume updated in case you suddenly need to use it because you get laid off/fired/downsized or because you need it to apply for a job that has suddenly popped up.

3. Give your references a call: Similar to Point #2 concerning your resume, give you references a call, make sure they’re still happy to be used as a reference for you, ensure they haven’t changed phone numbers or email addresses, and wish them a happy holiday season, too.

4. Think about the new year: Think about what you want to accomplish during the new year. Is a new job in your future? A raise or promotion? Thinking about going back to school? What do you need to do to get it accomplished and can you start laying the ground work now to get the new year off to a better start?

I’ve seen people get jobs on Christmas Eve so a job search during the upcoming holiday season shouldn’t be out of the question if you happen to be looking for a new job or thinking about it.

Many people often assume that certain times of the year aren’t conducive to getting a new job. Certainly, summer time can be a bit slow as hiring managers and other key staff are on vacation so hiring decisions can get drawn out a bit but at the end of the day if a company needs to hire someone, they need to hire someone.

I’ve seen people get jobs on all sorts of days that you might think would be slow periods for hiring. As mentioned Christmas Eve is one of them and New Year’s Eve is another. The day before Thanksgiving, too.

Again, if they need to hire someone they’re probably going to do it when they can and will work around holidays.

The same goes for the period after Christmas and right before New Year’s Eve. Those few days after Christmas and before the new year is rung in can be a good hiring time and I recall scheduling many interviews during this week.

Sometimes, a company needs to get a person hired before the end of the calendar year or risk losing the budget for the job. This can also happen during the year if the company’s year end happens to be at a different time.

With many people convincing themselves that companies don’t hire during the month of December until the new year, many may not even bother applying for jobs that you also desire so you might find your competition is less than it might otherwise be.

While some companies do postpone hiring near the end of the calendar year and possibly other times during the year, don’t make assumptions that might be incorrect and can cost you great job opportunities.