3 Strategies for Simplifying Your Holiday Season
The Holidays can be stressful. Between planning holiday gatherings, work events, kids' recitals, getting the decorations up in time, and the pressure to find the "perfect gift", we can easily end up feeling stretched too thin. This month I'll be talking about strategies for simplifying your holiday season so you can focus on what's truly important to you.
1. Take some time to think about what's really important to you this holiday season.
What are your priorities? Family time, starting new traditions, taking a day trip to the mountains to cut your own tree, having plenty of time for baking? Whatever your priorities are, write them down. These should get first priority on your calendar. There may be events you're invited to that will conflict with those priorities, but it's ok to say no to things if they don't fit easily into your schedule and align with your priorities.
2. Write down the holiday events and tasks you enjoy, and those you don't enjoy.
This will help to clarify your priorities. Maybe your work holiday party ends up on the "Holiday things I don't enjoy" list, yet you go every year because you feel obligated to. Give yourself permission not to go this year, and do something on your "Holiday things I enjoy" list that often gets put on the back burner instead.
3. Delegate the things you don't enjoy, so you can do more of the things you do enjoy.
This is a great opportunity to start new traditions. Did peeling potatoes end up on your "Holiday things I don't enjoy" list? Delegate that to your spouse or kids. As a child, one of my responsibilities every year was to peel the potatoes for Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner. It felt good knowing that I was contributing to the meal, and I loved getting to hang in the kitchen with the grown ups as they chatted while prepping the food.
I invite you to slow down this holiday season and spend some time thinking about what you really want. If rushing from holiday event to holiday event is running you ragged, then give yourself permission to declutter your calendar. If you're stressing about all the time and money spent shopping for the perfect gift, dial the gifting back. It's ok to simplify.
And if you're ready to get organized and create a less stressful and more functional home for the holidays, I'm here to help. We can do this!