The cows still need milking on your birthday. Some responsibilities don’t check your calendar.

Some obligations are indifferent to the calendar, and that is not unfairness, it is the nature of depending on each other. Animals, patients, small children and open restaurants do not pause for the dates that matter to you, which means somebody is always working while somebody else celebrates. Accepting that early makes you much easier to work with.

Look at the next month and spot the day your commitments will collide with something you want. Decide now how to handle it and ask for cover early rather than on the morning. When somebody else is in that position, offer to take their shift.