Ready for a stress-free Christmas? Here comes our survival guide
Here we are, facing the end of a year that turned out far from the ordinary. And with the prospect of a Christmas that probably won’t be quite as we are used to either. One fine tradition will be maintained though; sharing our most effective pieces of advice to help you close down the year with a clean conscience – and get the new year started filled with energy.
With only a couple of weeks until Christmas you might feel more frantic than festive, but don’t panic. We’ve put together a few pre-Christmas planning tips to ensure that you not only make it out of your (home) office for the holidays, but that you leave with your workload completely under control.
And we know you’re probably super-busy, so in true PEP-style we’ve prioritised. Listed below are what we – and our participants – believe are the three most important things to tick off before the Christmas dinner may be served.
Planning
At this time of year, deadlines pile up faster than wishes on the wish list of a 5-year-old. So, if you haven’t already, schedule time now to plan specifically for critical holiday deadlines. And stay focused as this is the season of dozens of distractions. Remember that what you need to achieve is not necessarily the same as what you’d like to be doing. Procrastination is never your friend, but at this time of year it’s particularly problematic.
Purging
This is a great time to get that clutter under control – and we’re not just talking coffee cups and Christmas cards. Be ruthless with your emails and electronic files: archive or delete as much as possible. By all means spruce up your physical workspace too but make organising your emails your absolute priority. That pristine desk won’t help your stress levels much when you return from holiday to an overflowing inbox.
Preparing
It can be difficult to look beyond Christmas, but you’ll be so glad you did when you come back from your break to calm rather than chaos. Look ahead and ascertain what preparation work needs to be done before you go away. Ask yourself whether you have everything under control for those first two weeks back. Making the effort to plan ahead now will minimise – if not eliminate altogether – any lingering work stress during your holiday.
And there you have it: One succinct survival strategy for the silly season, as promised. Simple? Yep. Straightforward? For sure. Any excuses? Nope. So, get going. Regardless of all the gifts you may receive for Christmas, having a stress-free end to this year (and a relaxing start to the new one) will be the gift that keeps on giving.
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!