One of my mentors describes how she knows when she has become out of control: "When my sock drawer is perfectly folded, sorted and lined up, I know that I am out of control in my life." Her logic is simple—the sock drawer is the lowest priority item on her life's to-do list. When everything else is out of control, she sorts her sock drawer. At least then she can feel like she got something done and is back in control. However, a clean sock-drawer may be a bad sign for a business owner. Recognizing that all of us have some version of a "sock drawer" in our life, have you figured out what yours is and what condition it's in? This can be a crazy time of year for lots of businesses. Budgets, seasonal sales concentration, holidays eating into production time...the list is long. What happens during these high-strain periods can dictate the culture of your company and its performance. As the leader, you have to make certain you set the right tone.