The holiday season is almost upon us, and even though it can be a magical time, it can quickly become a stressful time for many of us too. According to a survey from Slumber Cloud, one in three adults suffer from “holiday burnout”. 

The end of the year is definitely a marking point, both professionally and personally. With project deadlines, Christmas social events, Christmas shopping, goal setting and all the other things that the holiday brings with it, it’s no wonder it feels more stressful than magical. 

This is why we wanted to dedicate some time to thinking about how we can reduce the stress from the holiday season and make this time of the year as enjoyable as possible both at work and at home. 

5 tips to avoid holiday burnout:

Set realistic expectations

It’s the end of the year, not the end of the world. It’s totally normal to want to push ourselves a bit harder ahead of taking a break. However, we need to know how much we can healthily push ourselves. While a bit of pressure and stress can be beneficial, it’s essential to set realistic expectations about how much we can get over the line in just a few weeks. 

Take some time to plan and prioritise and also keep in mind that just as you are busier than usual, so is everyone else. 

Check our article about the Eustress or positive stress here. 

Looking ahead is great, but don’t forget to look back too

The end of the year is the time when we all start thinking about the new year and our new year’s resolutions, and that’s absolutely amazing, but sometimes it’s easier to forget about looking back at all we have accomplished and how far we have come. Take time to review and reflect and most importantly, take time to be grateful for all you have. 

Check out these questions to do some reflection on the past year and prepare for the future. 

Also, you can read this article to learn more about being grateful can reshape our brains. 

Use the holiday to build or strengthen your connections

Whether you celebrate Christmas or not, the holiday season is a great opportunity to build or strengthen our connections with colleagues, friends and family. While it may be cold and rainy, there are lots of ways to connect during the holiday season  – wrap up and get out, do something different, ice skating, Christmas markets, or a show. Make sure you take some time to be with your colleagues, friends and family, and more importantly, make sure you are present. 

Choose wisely

Even though it’s the perfect time to connect with people, it’s important to be conscious of how much we can deal with. As mentioned above, you need to be really present, so don’t feel pressure to attend every single social activity. Christmas can be a beautiful time to enjoy friends, colleagues and family, but it can also be an exhausting holiday if we don’t manage our time wisely. 

This is also an important thing to consider when organising Christmas parties at work. Make sure the events are optional and easily accessible in case people want to go just for a while. You should also think about being inclusive when organising Christmas parties, not everyone will celebrate Christmas, and definitely, not everyone will celebrate in the same way.

Don’t forget to take care of yourself

With so much going on, it’s easy to use our personal time for other commitments. However, as they say on planes, “make sure you put on your own mask before you help someone else”. 

It’s when we are busier than we need relaxing time the most. Taking breaks during the day, keeping your exercise routine and don’t overindulge during the holidays seem like small things, but they can go a long way to ensure that your body, mind and energy are ready for the holiday season and beyond. 

The Optimist View….

We can definitely relate to the feeling of wanting to do everything, all the time, for everyone. But no matter how optimistic we are, we know that we are only human and we can’t do it all. 

This is why it’s so crucial for us to take time to reflect, plan and realistically manage what we want to achieve and how and with whom we are investing our time during the festive season. 

It might seem like stating the obvious, but setting out simple intentions for the holiday season and seeing these through means you’re more likely to enjoy the benefits of some downtime and feel recharged and rejuvenated for the return to work.

We hope you all have a fantastic holiday!!