5 Tips to survive the holiday season

According to The American Psychological Association, the people most susceptible to stress over the holiday season are women, particularly women with children. The cost of gifts, the pressure to buy gifts and sense of overwhelm are pushing their stress levels to new extremes. By being properly organized, busy moms can cut their stress levels significantly and keep a tight rein on their holiday budget.

The My Organized Holidays epack takes each part of the holidays and breaks it down into manageable chunks, making it is easier to get through the to-do lists. It’s designed to be flexible and is easily used according to a family’s needs. Used in conjunction with the following tips, the My Organized Holidays epack will help busy moms everywhere get through the holidays, save money and have a great time.

•           Take tiny bites. Instead of tackling the whole thing, focus on one small job at a time. This way you are less likely to suffer from overwhelm, and more likely to get things done.

•           Just take the first step. Getting started is often the most difficult part of completing a task. Many times, once you have taken that first step, the second and third come without your having to think about it.

•           Replace the negative with the positive. Instead of thinking how boring or difficult the task ahead will be, concentrate on the feeling you will have once you have completed it. Instead of “I have to address all these boring envelopes,” think “How happy Great Aunt Etta will be to receive the photos of the kids.”  

•           Focus on the task at hand. It is so easy to get distracted these days. Whatever the task is, remove any distractions and only allow yourself to check your Facebook/Twitter/whatever when you have completed the task at hand.

•           Be picky about your To Do List. It is easy to add tasks to your to-do list that you can easily cross off, and it might feel good to get to cross them off too. But this strategy doesn’t shorten your list or achieve anything at the end of the day. “Pick son up from school” of course you are going to do that, it is hardly an option, not like not folding the laundry. If it isn’t a real to-do then leave it off the list. That way you feel real accomplishment when you do cross off completed jobs.

The My Organized Holidays epack is a PDF file containing planners, checklists and schedules specially crafted for busy moms to use over the holiday season.

The cost is $20, with 10% contributed as donations to KIVA.

Available as an instant download here

A free PDF gift list checklist is available here 

Jo Ebisujima is a Brit living in Japan. She loves creating for children and helping parents to organize themselves and their children so that they can spend more quality time together. She writes about her work at My Organized Chaos. She can also be found at her personal blog jojoebi designs where she shares about her everyday life, Montessori, crafting, and raising a bilingual child in Japan.