Easing into the holidays: Strategies for a stress-free Christmas.
Christmas is almost here, and from conversations I’ve been having with clients, colleagues and friends, the overwhelm is starting to kick in.
Christmas and the holiday season can be a really difficult time for a lot of people. And even for those who love it, there can be pockets of stress and overwhelm.
I wasn't surprised to learn that the period between Thanksgiving and Christmas sees the highest rate of suicides in the United States. This time can be especially lonely for many — whether they're single, in an unhappy relationship, grieving, or estranged from family members.
One of the things I’ve learned from life, and from some horribly fraught Christmases of the past, is that it’s so important to look after yourself.
While it’s not always possible to avoid stressful times – at Christmas and at other times of the year, it is always possible to build in some tactics to make it easier for yourself.
One of the things I’m doing this year is having a hard stop to my work year.
Last year I had a workshop on 23 December (you can just imagine how focused the participants were…) and another on 6 January.
Yeah, nah.
This year I’m channelling Australia Post and telling people that my cut-off date is Friday 15 December. And no, that’s not the last date you can give me work to do before the end of the year, it’s my last day of work for the year. YAY!
It also means that there are some projects I had hoped to complete this year and won’t have.
And you know what?
THAT IS TOTALLY OK.
Are you pressuring yourself to get everything done before Christmas?
Or is there someone else in your world with Christmas as an arbitrary date by which everything needs to be done?
Is it time to assess your current reality and reschedule a few of those tasks for 2024? Or do you need to have a conversation with your boss (or your clients) about what really needs to be done now and what can be held over?
If you’re starting to feel overwhelmed with everything you want to get done before Christmas, do these four things:
Breathe. Sit quietly and take a few deep breaths. Slowly in, hold, slowly out.
Make a cup of tea or coffee or pour a glass of wine.
Write a list of everything that needs to get done (personal and work), and by when. Work out what’s most important and needs to be prioritised, and what can wait until January. Or later. Or never. This might involve a conversation or two with your boss, colleagues, clients and family.
With everything that’s left, look at what you can delegate. Who else in your orbit at work and home can take on some of these duties? If it’s your turn to host Christmas, definitely look at what you can delegate – such as shopping, gift wrapping, cooking, cleaning. If you’re more than a single person household, who else can do some of these jobs in your home?
How are you feeling about Christmas this year?
And what are you delegating?
