4 Tips to Reduce Holiday Stress

The Holidays, one of the most joyful and wonderful times of the year, is also one of the most stressful times of the year. At times, it can be hard to focus on the moments and enjoying the season, instead of being stressed about finances, making sure the turkey doesn’t get dry, in laws coming into town, and making sure you don’t spoil the Santa surprise for your children. That’s a lot to stress about in just a short few months.

Healthy Coping

It’s inevitable that you’ll feel stressed during this season. Rest knowing that you and your family are creating incredible memories that will be cherished for years to come. In addition, remember that the holiday season is almost over. 

You don’t have to deal with it for very much longer, so you just have to cope with the stress for a few more weeks and then you can focus on the new year.

Amid all of this stress, make sure that you don’t let how overwhelmed you feel make you turn to unhealthy habits to cope with the stress. 

The holiday season is when the majority of relapses happen. Whether you’ve ever had issues with substance abuse or not, don’t let yourself rely on alcohol and other substances to relieve stress.

Take a Step Back and Breathe

As Thanksgiving has ended and we’re nearing Christmas, the stress is paramount. It may feel like too much, sometimes. When you start to feel overwhelmed, make a conscious effort to take a step back and to take a break. 

Everything that is stressing you out will still be there when you get back, and the house isn’t going to burn down if you need to take twenty minutes to yourself before you throw yourself back into the thick of it. 

Go into your room and lock the door, and just close your eyes. Even if you have to lock yourself in your closet, or bathroom, or office, whatever room of the house you can get a few minutes of peace to focus, take advantage of that room and give yourself a few minutes. 

You deserve it. Close your eyes, and focus on your breathing. This link has a great guide for breathing exercises. Taking just a few minutes to focus on breathing will help clear your mind and better prepare you to handle all of the issues that are waiting for you when you’re ready to tackle them. 

Don’t Eat too Many Holiday Goodies

It’s much too easy to let your nutrition go during the holiday season. Pies, cakes, puddings, halloween candy, and stocking stuffer candy is just the beginning of the tempting holiday goodies. 

There’s a reason why most people need to dedicate the first few months of the year to lose weight! The holidays are really filled with candy and goodies, and while it’s fine to indulge and let yourself enjoy everything that this holiday season has to offer, you also need to make sure you know when to stop. 

Don’t let yourself get carried away. Make sure you’re conscious of every single thing you put in your mouth. If you start eating mindlessly, soon enough you’ll find yourself with an empty pie tin and an entire bag of Reese’s Peanut Butter trees gone. 

Having a proper diet will help you deal with stressful situations better. In fact, having a proper diet affects a lot more areas of your life than you would probably realize. Eating right will help you have more purposeful sleep, improve your skin and hair, as well as improve your mood. If you’re happy, your holidays will be happier.

Focus on Experiences, Rather than Things

A lot of what makes the holidays special is all of the gift giving. Giving gifts to your loved ones is a fun experience, but it’s all too easy to get wrapped up in the pursuit of the perfect gift for the people in your life. 

It’s just too easy to forget about why we celebrate the holidays, and focus instead on just gifts and things. Try to shift your mindset from things, to experiences. Experience reading Christmas stories with your family while you all sip on hot cider. 

Experience driving around to see the most extravagant holiday lights you can find. Take time during the holidays to create new traditions that are focused on experiences, rather than gifts and things.

The Australian Small Business Guide to the Festive Season

Poor trading conditions have seen an increase in the number of businesses collapsing, especially small businesses. Strained cash flow has meant that small businesses are feeling the pressure, but with the festive season up ahead, companies do have a chance to develop a competitive advantage if they plan efficiently. Evaluating your expenses, cutting back on running costs and choosing to rent office space for shorter spans of time can all make the difference to your bottom line. And, importantly, as we head closer to the end of the year, planning effectively for the festive season could see your business start the new year in a stronger position.

The Current Climate For The Local Small Business

The Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) has released figures showing that 81% of businesses that filed for insolvency in 2012/2013 had been small businesses with less than 20 employees. The construction industry fared the worst of all, accounting for 24% of the total number of insolvencies. It was followed by the retail sector, which contributed to 10% of collapsed business endeavours.

And, the experts say, when large companies go under, smaller companies are likely to follow in their footsteps. Because of the complex nature of business relationships, smaller companies that rely on the business of their larger counterparts will suffer a loss in revenue when that channel is closed. By way of example, the collapse in the construction industry has had a ripple effect and affected transport companies, excavation and building as well. And, as things become tougher, profit margins are also shrinking back.

The ASIC says that 42% of collapsed businesses cited poor strategic business management as the biggest reason for failure. 41% blamed high cash use or poor cash flow for their demise, while 32% said they were running at a loss. The tightening of regulations by the Australian Taxation Office has also been identified as one of the factors that has turned the pressure up on small businesses.

Using The Festive Season To Create Opportunities And Influence People

The festive season is the biggest spending period in the local consumer buying calendar. And this year the experts say that consumers are looking for great deals as well as exemplary customer service when they are doing their shopping. Businesses that want to turn things around should be planning their Christmas campaigns and getting ready to create more sales opportunities.

November: Getting Your Shop In Order

The next few weeks will be invaluable for businesses as we approach the Christmas season. Businesses are encouraged to maintain good communication channels with their clients in the lead up to December. A loyalty program is an effective way to create targeted campaigns that result in more sales. Early bird promotions and offers are also best suited a few months ahead of a big spending period, as they allow you to extend it. You can do this by promoting your offers on social media channels, app messages, text and email marketing to your client base. Do some work for your customers too- tell them what makes a special gift and let them know which of your items could sell out ahead of the festive season, as an incentive for them to get their shopping done earlier.

So, why is it important to get it all done now? Research shows that together November and December are responsible for between 20 and 40% of annual sales. By the end of November you can start introducing festive season graphic elements to your correspondence. For businesses offering customized gifts, an early start is important so you can have the goods ready on time. Also think about offering value-added services like gift wrapping, or free shipping, if you operate online, for people who order before November.

Putting The Finishes Touches On For December

December is equally important, as it is at this time that people have their extra cash in hand and are looking for wise ways to spend it. Gift vouchers are good to have, as they provide the universal solution for the person who has everything. As you get closer to December be more specific and provide more guidance on gift selection and product detail.

Stressing about Paying for Christmas Presents? 4 Quick Fixes for Financing Christmas

Christmas presents may bring joy on Christmas morning, but buying them can also cause a huge financial headache for those who go into the holiday season unprepared. This Christmas, instead of waiting until the last minute to figure out how you will afford all the gifts you need to buy, try one of these four quick strategies for financing your Christmas spending. 

Set Aside a Little Money from Every Paycheck

If you set aside a small amount from every paycheck, when you are ready to do your Christmas shopping, you will already have the money you need set aside. To figure out how much money you need to save each week, figure out how much money you want to spend and divide by the number of weeks you have left until your shopping needs to be done. 

Earn Some Extra Cash

If your finances are so tight that there is no extra to be put aside, another option is earning extra cash for Christmas. You can do this by picking up extra shifts at work, selling unwanted belongings you have lying around your house or donating plasma. You can sell homemade crafts or offer tutoring lessons. You are only limited by your creativity and motivation. 

Get a Small Loan

Christmas gifts. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

If, despite your best planning, you find yourself in the last few days before Christmas with more gifts to buy and not enough money to cover them, you may consider getting a small, short-term loan to cover your last minute Christmas shopping. A payday loan from places like Power Finance in Dallas may be just what you need to fund the best Christmas your family has ever had. 

Agree to Spend Less

If the reason that you are short on Christmas funds is because your family always spends extravagantly, make a pact with each other that this year you will limit spending to a more reasonable amount. You may want to place a limit on the number of presents you will buy or the amount you will spend on each person. You may agree to do a white elephant or secret Santa gift exchange instead of buying gifts for everyone.

The best way to fund your Christmas is to prepare in advance. Whether you choose to set money aside, earn extra cash, spend less or take out a short term loan, make your family’s Christmas the best one yet by making sure you have the funds to pay for it.