image courtesy of flickr user, Jack
Folks, it’s that time of year again! All of the sudden the weather is cooler and pumpkin spice lattes are back! Hooray! November really marks the beginning of the holiday season, which is definitely good and bad. I obviously have mixed feelings about this time of year.
I love the holidays. Everyone seems nicer, I get to finally wear boots and sweaters, and its’ a great time to hang out with friends and family- basically, it’s a two month long party. Unfortunately, I also hate the holidays. There’s too much food, my scheduled gets all messed up and everyone is out of the office.
In terms of work, everything is all over the place. Sometimes I’m overloaded with work as clients are in a mad dash to complete projects by the end of the year, but other times things are slower with no one starting projects until after the New Year. As a freelancer, there a few things I can do to keep work steady while still enjoying this jolly time of year.
Load up on work. For the past month I have been saying, “yes” to every project. I am of the mentality that I have to take on as much work as I can now, knowing the end of December slows down significantly. “I’ll sleep when I’m dead” in this case becomes, “I’ll sleep between Christmas and New Year’s!”
Take time to care for yourself. While I’ve been saying, “yes” to work, I understand the importance of saying “no” when I’m flooded with holiday gatherings. It can be difficult to make it to all the events this time of year; it’s taxing and keeps me from work. One thing I that helps is if I can’t make it to something, I make plans for after the beginning of the year. This also gives me something to look forward to once the craziness has died down.
Be cautious of spending. Money is definitely my number one stress factor, especially since the amount I make varies from project to project. One reason I chose to write this post is as a reminder to myself; I know I’m going to be buying gifts and spending more than usual so it’s important to remember I need to cut back on things like designer coffee and excessive eating out.
Don’t lose sight of what is important. Not to be corny, but at the end of the day, the holidays are really about spending time with people who are important to you. So when you start to get stressed remember this is meant to be a happy time of year and that it’s not about gifts or how much you spent. Be excited and have a good time! Before you know it you’ll be back in the regular swing of things.
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