Tips to taking care of your SELF – mindfulness and awareness – choices that can make a big difference to have a much more enjoyable season.
1. Clean closets – Yes! Organize those towels, blankets, shoes, seasonal items, games, toys, etc. Give things you don’t need to charity. Less clutter and more organization will free you of much unnecessary weight.
2. Eliminate your poisonous or negative “friends” – If someone is always dumping on you, sucking you dry, is the queen of complaining, and has a street named after them ~ ‘one-way’ they are most likely not the caliber of friend you want or need in your life. Raise the bar on your deserve level. Give yourself permission to distance yourself from them, completely.
3. Say no to extra things you said yes to, and shouldn’t have – Yes, you may be the ‘one’ everyone goes to and depends on; however, you are allowed to say ‘no’. Develop healthy boundaries to preserve your energy and keep you from becoming depleted and stressed. Hang up your Wonder Woman cape for a little while.
4. Go through your files and dump the extra papers – OMG, is this speaking my language! How many of you are professional pile-its – not one who flies an airplane, but one who has piles of files here, piles of papers there, piles of bills over there. It’s clutter and disorganization. If you have a lot of newspapers, consider dropping them off at the local SPCA versus in your recycle bin. Invest in a shredder or go to a local place that can shred them for you. You will FEEL MUCH LIGHTER.
5. Give gifts only to those you WANT to – Beware of getting trapped into the commercialism of the season. Go back to basics.
6. Remember you don’t have to do it all – You don’t have to bake cookies, buy for everyone, decorate the house, spend time with ALL relatives. Are you married to tradition? Maybe it’s time to take a break from tradition just for this year. You can always go back to it again next year.
7. UNPLUG and let others take care of you. Maybe another relative or friend can be the host this year for the annual dinner party and you can bring some side dishes. Maybe you can go out to a restaurant instead of cooking the huge spread. Maybe you can let go of _________ (fill in the blank) and treat yourself to a bubble bath, massage, nap, brisk walk in the park, a movie, and so on ….
Love and JOY, Cynthia