3 Systems for Less Stress This Holiday Season

Giving seems to be the theme of the holiday season, but do you ever feel like all you’re giving is your time and energy? Now is the perfect time to ensure you are not letting the weight of the holidays bring you down.  Let’s be real - everyone hopes to have a holiday season filled with those closest to us, good food, and relaxation. Reality usually looks a bit different. It’s important to acknowledge that changes must be made if you want a holiday season filled with less stress. Those changes will happen through taking smaller action steps toward a goal of feeling less overwhelmed. 

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In preparation for our recent webinar, we polled our followers to learn what they felt most stressed about regarding the upcoming season. We had two resounding winners: 

1. Getting ALL of the things done.

2. Being pulled in too many directions. 

I won’t say we were surprised by the response, as these are both things that we have worked to combat over the years. Regardless of the time of year, we put a lot of pressure on ourselves and with that we hold ourselves to the highest of expectations. As we all work to get through the next few weeks with the majority of our sanity, The Goalden System wanted to share a few tips:

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System	Why does it matter?	Friendly Reminders
Use a Calendar	Using a calendar gives you a place to keep all of your commitments. You will visually be able to see your time and adjust accordingly.	Paper calendar? Electronic? Do what works best for YOU! RSVP early and immediately add to your calendar. Spend 10-15 minutes on Sunday reviewing your calendar for the week. Are there any adjustments to be made?
Prioritize Needs Versus Wants	With so many opportunities for events/tasks at the end of a year, you’ll need to determine what tasks are non-negotiable and what tasks would fall into the “would be nice to do, but not necessary” category. This approach grants you the chance to focus on “needs” before overloading yourself.	Your mental well-being is always a “Need.” Be aware that not everything labeled a “want” isn’t going to happen - you’re just prioritizing other obligations or tasks first.
Say "No" More Often	Giving yourself permission to say “no” to events, people, and/or obligations allows you the chance to not become too busy.	It might be uncomfortable. Consider if there’s someone that can help hold you accountable. Put a “rule” into place for yourself to help guide the conversation. For example, “Thank you for the invite, but we already have another obligation that day and we are only attending one event per day this season.”

“How do I implement these changes daily basis?” 

This question usually stems from thinking that making changes will be “one more thing to do” within a day. One simple way to start building a new habit is to set a timer for a short time and use that guideline to ensure the process doesn’t become cumbersome. For example,, you can set a seven-minute timer while looking at your to-do list. The goal within those seven minutes is to determine which tasks fall into the “want” or “need” category. Small changes lead to bigger habit changes. 

“What if I already have a system?” 

The Goalden System believes that there is no one size fits all strategy. For example, if you already use a calendaring system and it’s working - that’s fabulous! Ask yourself a reflective question, such as, “What part of my system isn’t working the way I hoped?” The idea is to build a system that works for YOU, not necessarily start over completely with a new system. Review the tips above to see if you can implement some new ideas to better your system. Do you have a specific question about how to tackle a new system? Reach out to us! 

There is no magic wand when it comes to being less stressed. Feeling overwhelmed and building a holiday schedule looks different for everyone. Still, we want to encourage you to make small changes to begin moving toward building the holiday season you hope for. 

Give yourself permission to do what you need to do for YOU!