All good ideas start with good plans. 

As in business as in life, a solid plan to get you from where you’re at to where you want to be is going to make all the difference, so with that in mind – here we go!

Schedule Yourself

No, really, we mean it. Don’t overbook yourself this season. Pull out your desktop calendar along with your invitations and your “possibilities” and schedule your and your family’s parties and activities as comprehensively as possible. Now, take a red pen and put it to work. 

Be brutal. This is especially true if you’re inclined to suffer from FOMO (the fear of missing out). You do not need to say yes to every invite or event, and we’re living in the best possible time for plausible excuses. Choosing the best of the best and with decent spaces in between will give you time to recover, and you’ll enjoy the parties and events you do go to even more. 

An added bonus will be that your recovery or “downtimes” in-between will be minimized, allowing you to focus on what still needs to happen in the meantime and give you some space for planning your end-of-year party’s and for goalsetting your first quarter 2022.

Start Holiday Shopping Early

The promise you make yourself every year, right? Well, this year it’s more important than ever to do it properly. For one, shelves are emptying early, and two, finances have taken a hit, and you may need to do a little more planning and cutting than you might have thought you were going to or wanted to.

Better yet – do as much as you can online. If you start now, you’ll find some solid bargains and promotions, and you’ll be almost guaranteed delivery in good time for Yule.

Keep Your Fitness Routine in Check (or Start a New One)

If you’re already the health-nut-fitness-freak-type, then now is no time to take your foot off the gas. Keeping on track with your fitness routine will mean you start the new year strong, and you’ll have fewer holiday pounds to contend with, so keep moving.

Now, if you’re just starting a routine and you’re already feeling tempted to quit because it’s too cold – remember this, summertime beach bodies (are built in the winter). Keep at it; by the time the spring arrives, you’ll be well into achieving your goals, and your reward system will be going into overdrive.

Keep an Eye on Your Overall Healthcare

It’s very easy to become too relaxed when it comes to managing our healthcare this time of year, don’t do it  – stay on track managing your healthcare and diet, and especially keep a solid eye on your food and drink intake. Check out Goodnature for easy and delicious ways to regulate your diet and calorie intake.

Money Matters

Material things don’t matter. They’re nice to have, but they do.not.matter if your family has taken a bit of a financial battering this year (hey, whose hasn’t), but even if you’re one of the lucky ones, keep an eye on your spending and manage your household cash flow properly.

Don’t fall for those “cheap” credit card offers that conveniently make an appearance at this time of year.  

Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff

It can be tempting to want to over plan, overschedule, and over-commit. Don’t. This is as much your time as it is anyone else’s, and you don’t owe anyone anything. Choose from the parties that work for you and make the most sense for maintaining your social, professional, and familial connections – and accept that not everything is going to go to plan. 

It doesn’t matter. Remember what your mamma taught you? Those who mind don’t matter, and those who matter don’t mind.

Have a great time this holiday season, take a load off and take a breath and relax into it; heaven knows – we all need it. But do it in ways that will make sense for you and your family, and that won’t come at a cost that you don’t need to expend, financially – or otherwise.