Along with the financial stresses that seem to come along with the Holidays, I think the stress on our time is one of the biggest reasons some of us would like to just crawl under a rock for a couple of months.
I told you a few days ago about Tim and my first married Christmas. The one where we literally had only 3 nights on the calendar not already booked. Some days we had multiple events to attend. On top of our packed schedule, I was also in the middle of covering for a girl at work who was on maternity leave. I was doing her job along with my own — and her responsibilities were a little outside of my expertise. Needless to say, I was STRESSED. and EXHAUSTED. It was our first Christmas as a married couple and we just wanted to make the best of it! We wanted to do everything (ok – I wanted to do everything!). We neglected to look at our current situation and prioritize what was really important to us to be a part of.
1) Budget your time.
We’ve budgeted our money, now we are going to budget our time. Our time is extremely valuable! It’s something that must be protected. Take some time to evaluate where you are in life. Are you going to be extra busy at work or school? Do you have little ones at home? Decide on a number of nights per week that you feel is a doable amount to be away from home. This will help you decide what you will and will not say “yes” to. This number must also include non-holiday related obligations.
2) Prioritize
Gather all of your invitations, announcements, and event calendars. First write down all of the events that are obligations or mandatory. Remember things like annual family get-togethers, important work events, or school/church events that you need to be at. Get these times slotted on your calendar.
Take a step back and see how much time that leaves you with. Now you can take a look at events that aren’t necessary, but you would life to attend; like parties, community events, or entertainment/productions. Pick and choose the ones that will fit with your schedule and the slotted day per week allowance you have given yourself.
If you are wanting to throw your own party, pick a date during a week that isn’t as busy as the others to ensure you have plenty of time to prepare without driving yourself crazy. You may have to decline a few things during this week so you can tackle your to-do list.
3) Practice saying “no”.
This is the part that may take a little more effort. Only commit to things that are absolutely necessary or things that fill your spirit. That party that you don’t really want to go to, but you feel bad not attending…..it may be best to just politely decline. Try to figure out what the reason really is of why you don’t want to go, and make a decision on whether it is really worth the time and stress to attend (it may be!).
This is also the time to set aside your FOMO Syndrome, as my sister calls it (fear of missing out). Going to every party and every Christmas musical you can find may sound like a lot of fun, but in reality these things will be hard to fully enjoy if you are stressed, grumpy, and exhausted from overcommitment. Being a little more picky about what you do with your time is totally worth it.
4) Stay organized.
Once you’ve decided what events you will and will not attend, make sure to promptly give your RSVP. Write every event on your calendar, and make sure all of your online calendars are synced. Keep invitations and flyers that include important information like date, time, and location in a designated location. It’s always fun to show up to a party you’re really excited about the day after it actually happened.
One of the goals of taking on this 31 day challenge is to complete all of your necessary Holiday to-do’s ahead of time. This will in turn give you the freedom to participate in more fun events without feeling guilty or exhausted.
I’ve made the calendars above into printable PDF’s for you all again today! (Let me know if you would like to see a whole set for 2013.)
We’re continuing to lay the foundation for a peaceful, stress-free season! Keep following along — soon we’ll be to the fun stuff (shopping and decorating!).
Happy Friday, and have a great weekend!
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