It’s That Time of Year…!
Oh, December. The most wonderful, er, chaotic, time of year! End-of-year deadlines, impending holidays, the barrage of events – both desired and dreaded. This special time of year can make me feel burnt out and longing for calmer months…
And then I remember that I’m a part of my problem.
Who set so many ambitious goals for the end of the year? Who said yes to all the family events? Who forgot to block out time for exercise, deep work projects, and unstructured free time?
Um, I did.
If this sounds like you at all – overworked, over-scheduled, overwhelmed! – here are 3 quick tips for a calmer, happier, and more relaxed month:
1. Life Hack
Pick one weekend and cancel all your plans for it. Block it out as Recuperation Time. Be sure not to add any plans back to in! Activities like sleeping, tidying up, reading, watching TV or movies, making art, journaling, doing laundry, grocery shopping, are highly encouraged.
2. Work Hack
One person can only do so much. If you feel like you’re drowning in work tasks, take your to do list and eliminate one work item from it each day. When you feel less overwhelmed by what’s in front of you, you actually stand a better chance at accomplishing what you really need to do, and it’ll probably be higher quality too. Remember: show yourself the same level of compassion that you’d show someone else.
3. Gifting Hack
If you do gifts this time of year, pick one gift and give it to multiple, if not all, of the people for whom you buy gifts. Bonus points if it’s something you made (see activities you can do for tip #1)! I’ve done this in some form or another the last few years – one year, I gave everyone in my family a copy of Between the World and Me and a card that I made. Here are a few starting points if you need some inspiration:
Alysia Mazzella
Jacque Dubose
Black Snapper Design by Lisa Slocum
Word Up Community Bookshop/Librería Comunitaria
