That should read YOU and this is just a friendly reminder to take a minute for yourself in the run up to Christmas.

For so many people Christmas is like a sprint to the finish line. The pressure of all the expectations we have created for ourselves, society has created for us or we think or know others have of us. Family. Work. Personal. Relationships. If that isn’t enough we also like to throw in trying to finalise projects, clients, goals – personal and business related. If we can just get everything done before the 24th and then we can really enjoy the day.. hopefully. Clean slate into the New Year. Woo!  It’s a mighty goal and a worthy one and I’m not going to tell you not to aim for that. I personally love tying off my year in a big red bow to mark its completion. What I will tell you though is that ambitions that big need organisation and systems to be set up earlier in the year but that’s a chat for another day. I also won’t join the “let it go” chorus because I know you’re probably going to try anyway. I definitely have in the past and would in that position again. So lets not beat ourselves up over that and just accept that as part of our Christmas /End of Year nature and move on to the YOU part of this equation.

Christmas is less than 2 weeks away. I know. I know. BREATHE. “What’s coming will come and we’ll face it when it does” [Hagrid] The point is, you arriving at the day frazzled and burnt out will help nothing. Tired we might not be able to do much about if you have toys to put together the night before or you didn’t get to the present wrapping yet [they always take longer than you think and I’ve faced many early dawns myself on this account] BUT whether your end of year is a laugh riot of friends and family. Office parties. Whether you will be spending it alone or with a few intimates. Taking some time over the next couple of weeks for yourself will help you deal with all the end of year craziness a little better. I’m not going to lie to you. Things won’t necessarily go more smoothly because there are too many factors and other people involved in the process but you WILL be better able to deal with the challenges as well as enjoy the delights of the season if you’re not in crazy town from stress yourself.

So what to do. What am I advocating? I know you’re busy so I don’t want to create unrealistic notions to add to your “To Do” list. 15 minutes a day. That’s it. When you wake up. Your lunch time. After the kids are in bed. Before starting dinner. It doesn’t matter where. If you can prioritize more – even better. This doesn’t have to be hard. Depending on the time you have and where you’ll be when you have it… some ideas.

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  • Meditate or Mindful breathing.
  • Go to the park, take off your shoes and put your feet on the grass ..very grounding.
  • Go for a walk
  • Go to the gym… exercise that stress off
  • Read a book  (Not self improvement!) All those 15 minutes or more will add up.
  • Take a bath use gorgeous scented products.
  • Buy yourself a cupcake/ fresh squeezed juice etc and take time to really savour it.
  • Get a pedicure
  • Craft
  • Ring a friend

You know you best. What is it that even 15 minutes would help you unwind, give you a little bit of time to yourself and make your wee little heart happy? Now go do that. Also sleep. I can not stress that enough. Whether you have kids or not we all know how ratty kids can get when they haven’t gotten enough or need more. Don’t fool yourself that you don’t have an adult equivalent of that. No matter how well you think you do without it. We all function at a higher, more productive level and deal with things better when we are well rested.

Add these couple of things, they take minimal effort and will make a big difference. I’d love to know what you did and how it went… you know… when you have a minute.

E x

Featured Image: Chevy Chase. National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation 1989.Warner Bros

 

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