Festive Good, Festive Bad and the Work Life

Are you working? I am - as the 20s start rolling in, in December, it gets harder and harder to want to work. This is natural. We are all tired - especially if your only leave during the year was linked to hospital visits and iron drips! We may need to get through a day or a week or a month before we get a break, how do we manage it?

I start by closing off as much as I can and cleaning out my desk and desktop for the New Year. I also start preparing my mind for the shutdown. This is important as everything is in your mind - its a vacation in there :)

This shutdown is complicated and may vary from person to person. I start with small things. Less phone usage, reduced social media time, reduced TV time. I read more, I sleep earlier and deeper, and I plan. I decide what I want to do during the break. I plan the days and evening, the friends and family. And MOST IMPORTANTLY - I plan time for myself. To do whatever I want, when I want, how I want to do it and even not doing anything is planned.

Now - this may seem a little pedantic but trust me, its worth it. This way, you don't complete your vacation asking yourself "Where did the time go". And when it's done and you have to get back to the work cycle, you feel ready for it. So go ahead, take a page and paper (I'm old-school that way), and write stuff down - even if it's in your head. And through it all - do not forget to take some time for you. Because without you - nothing else matters!

Happy Holidays! Eat, Sleep, Alone time, Play, Repeat