With the holidays and the year coming to an end, December is a time when many people, especially small business owners, are starting to feel that there are just not enough hours in the day to get everything done in their professional and personal lives. Things like hosting holiday parties, hitting end-of-year business goals, and spending time with customers or family and friends, are all things that seem impossible to get to within the limited days left in the year.

Over the last few weeks we’ve been posting a series of holiday blogs highlighting some of the ways Windows technology can help make this season a little brighter and certainly more productive. To add on to this, I wanted to offer up five tips that may be interesting for small businesses and will help them get everything on the to-do list accomplished, while also allowing time for refueling and prepping for the New Year.

1. Work from anywhere: Get the most out of your day by being able to close those sales all while doing your holiday shopping at the mall. A Windows 7 Professional PC makes working from anywhere a breeze. Just click the network icon on the taskbar to see your wireless options and within a click you're connected.

2. Keep your work secure: Not only can you work from anywhere with a Windows 7 Professional PC, but you can also do so with the added assurance that your work is safeguarded. You can work from the mall closing those deals knowing that your work is protected via automatic backups. Additionally with file encryption technology built into Windows 7 Professional, your information stays secure on your PC.

3. Stay productive: With Windows 7 Professional, you and your employees can be incredibly efficient crossing off those to-dos. With Windows 7 features like powerful search you can find information quickly while making it easy to access files offline so you have the needed flexibility for the moments when you’re not connected.

4. Use cloud services to manage your PCs: If you’re a small business owner without a way to manage your PCs and not sure how secure they are, Windows Intune is likely a great option for you. You can use this cloud service to manage your PCs (see what software is on them, keep them up-to-date, etc.) and keep your PCs secure with built-in anti-malware. You can manage security and management tasks from anywhere from a web-based console.

5. Relax a little: So now that the deals are closed and the holiday shopping is done, it’s time to relax. With a Windows 7 Professional PC, you can take a break from the grind and watch your favorite shows on Internet TV or play that favorite game of yours. I know I plan on watching some Christmas classics with my kids.

With all of this said, we hope you will use your Windows technology to end the year with a bang and find some time to have some fun, drink some eggnog and take time for yourself and loved ones.

Here’s to a great 2011 and an even better 2012!