One Trap to Avoid During The Holiday Season

The “Over” Trap

One trap we get caught up in is overdoing everything during the holidays: overeat, overbook, over travel, over schedule, and overspend.

There’s a lot of “Over” in the holiday season.

If there’s one trap we get caught up in during the holidays, it’s doing too much and wiping ourselves out.

Here’s a couple tips to take come out a little bit saner than usual during the holiday season.

Slow down

Do only what you are able. Then do less than that.

Spend your time and money with purpose in mind. Spend it with the people you love. You don’t need to go out of your way to attend every holiday activity. Make your choices based on what is joyful and fulfilling for you.

Shake up your traditions

If you have a outdated tradition in your family or personal beliefs, take a bold step and shed it this year.

Ask yourself if you really need to bake a ton of cookies this year, because now everyone is keto or gluten-free and they aren’t going to eat them anyway.

Do you get joy out of sending 120 cards to people you hardly speak to any more, or is it a burden to your time and pocketbook (cards and stamps are a huge expense). Would you rather narrow it down to 20 cards to a select people, or ditch the tradition completely?

Do the Hygge thing

A Danish custom, Hygge seems to be all the rage. In an American nutshell, it is about giving self-care. Imagine sitting on the couch in your comfiest jimmies, wrapped in a blanket with a hot cocoa, and reading a novel.

Mmmm….Hygge.

It’s not watching TV, or drinking, or whatever else is overstimulating. This is about relaxing. Taking a time-out.

If you’re an extrovert, I suppose you could do a Hygge party. But I’m an introvert, and that sounds like a lot of work and torture to me.

No impulse buys

One of the biggest expenses of holiday overspending is impulse buys. With all of the sales happening this time of year, it’s easy to justify getting something extra because it’s marked down in price.

To avoid this trap, it takes planning. Lots of planning.

Ugh. Sorry!

I know many of us hate planning! Especially for something as unwary and emotional as the holiday season.

However, if you plan the financial part, you can be as spontaneous as you like within the money parameters you’ve set for yourself.

Think of your overall spending goals, write them down, then be conscientious of your spending habits while you’re buying gifts for your people. This will save you in the long run.

Michelle Jaqua is a blogger on Medium.com. She writes to inspire people towards personal development and to live a passionate life. Sometimes she just writes about life. If you’d like to see her other developing projects, sign up for her mailing list here.