10 Steps to a Stress-Free HolidayWritten by Beth Tabak
“The stress-free way to enjoy holidays is to plan, take one step at a time, and have a sense of humor.” Beth TabakCan you feel holiday jitters beginning? Suddenly there it is right around corner. Relax! Take time to plan well now and ease into holidays with a big smile. Grab a journal and pen, and let’s get started. 1- Reminisce over previous holidays- In your journal create a column for What Works and another for Not That Again. Under What Works list activities that bring you joy, come naturally, and click into place. Under Not That Again list your challenges. Jot down things that drain your energy and bring you down. What can you do to delegate, dump, or change items in Not That Again column and embrace more of activities in What Works column? What changes need to be made? 2- Choose a theme you can be excited about- What is important to you this holiday? Base your theme on that. If you want to stay home instead of traveling your theme could be “Home for Holidays”. If your budget is tight consider “Simply Sensational”. Your theme helps you stay focused. A theme that honors your spirituality could be "Faith and Family First". Or choose a favorite quote such as Mahatma Gandhi's “Be Change You Wish to See in World”. Get creative, have fun, and write it down. 3- Set your top 4 priorities- Base them on what you really want which should connect with your theme. Get crystal clear. Write them down. When you know your priorities you are able to respond easily to a request and set boundaries. When someone asks you to get involved request 24 hours to respond. Look at your priorities and see if it serves them. If it does, consider it. If not, answer is likely no. 4- Create a Map- What if you took a big trip without planning? You would likely get lost, waste time, and experience anxiety. It makes sense to plan at holidays when so many areas of our lives are effected: time, energy, personal care, relationships, physical environment, and finances. Consider creating a task list thru end of year. It takes a block of time but will save you time and stress. It will rescue you from running in circles, going back and forth to same place, and trying to remember what’s next. In past I've had hundreds of items on my task list. No wonder we get stressed when we attempt this in our heads. Here's a tool to help. Pick up a task list at www.StartingNowCoaching.com or create your own. On your computer create a chart with 4 columns. Use your theme for header. Under your theme list your priorities horizontally. Label columns in a way that is helpful to you. I use Business, Personal, Holiday, and Need List. Use small font and minimal margin space to fit as many rows as possible. Print your map. List your tasks and add on as they come to you. Keep your map with you at all times. Schedule time to carry out tasks. Have fun and build momentum as you make progress. Remember to save it for next year.
| | Widen And Deepen Your Relationships...Get to the Good StuffWritten by Beth A. Tabak
“Get off surface and deepen your relationships. Go after buried treasures and reap rewards.” Beth TabakGet past “how are you doing? how’s wife and kids?” with response being “good, not so good, or fine” to story behind each person. This is when you develop connection, and people grow from connection. People seek value and want to contribute. Whether you want to increase business, develop your career, gain support, eliminate barriers, create opportunities, or merely relate and be loved; benefits of widening your inner circle and going deeper are astronomical. How easy it is to get comfortable with where we are and who we are with. We sometimes close door to getting to know others around us who could add great value to our lives. Growth is a tremendous part of human life. We grow physically. We grow in knowledge and wisdom. Many of us strive to grow spiritually. We grow in and out of relationships. It seems that when we are growing more fulfilled we become. When we are not growing we become disconnected, bored, and frustrated. While you may have many good relationships, is it possible that you are missing out on other remarkable experiences because you have relaxed into your comfort zone? Keep in mind that more connections we have more opportunities come our way, and deeper those connections more stimulating relationship. So what is first step? The first step is to create best relationship with only person you are guaranteed to be with for your entire life. Yes, you! You attract relationships which are a reflection of yourself. So if you do not like who you are attracting, then take time to develop relationship with yourself. Take pride in all that you are. When you surrender and let go of all things you think you should be, you begin fascinating journey of being who you are meant to be. When you except yourself for all that you are...strengths and weaknesses...you can except others in same way. You expend less energy when you are authentic, yet you are more likely to have a profound impact on others. When you take full responsibility for your own happiness you remove burden from others of fulfilling those expectations. This lightens relationship enabling it to blossom.
|
