Is your inbox feeling a little cray-cray right now?
Maybe it’s jam-packed with emails about holiday sales—Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Beige Wednesday, Polka Dot Thursday, whatever the latest shopping frenzy may be—as well as party invitations, and a zillion other things that are vying for your attention.
Wouldn’t it be nice to stop all the noise and just do… less?
I’m here to remind you… you can. You get to decide what kind of December you want to have. It can be anything you want it to be. If you’re craving a quieter, calmer holiday season, you can create that for yourself.
Instead of doing 1,007 different things this month, here are 7 things you can do to wrap up the year on a positive note.
- Clear space.
Unsubscribe from all of those email lists that you don’t particularly need anymore. Give your inbox some room to breathe. To unsubscribe from hundreds of lists—with just one click—use unroll.me. Delete unnecessary apps from your phone. Install LeechBlock onto your Internet browser to stop yourself from spending an excessive amount of time on certain websites (cough cough Facebook, Twitter, BuzzFeed, etc).
- Write one “thank you” note.
Instead of sending hundreds of holiday cards to people you barely know, take ten minutes and write one heartfelt “thank you” note to someone who’s made a difference in your life. It can be a friend, mentor, writer, artist, activist, politician, anyone who has touched your life. Just one note. Quality over quantity.
- Consider making it a no-gift year.
If holiday shopping is stressful for you, why not just… not do it? Tell your friends and extended family, “Please don’t feel obligated to purchase gifts for me or my family. Please save your cash and treat yourself to something beautiful, or consider donating to an organization that you love. My family and I have decided to make this a no-gift year. Instead of shopping, we’ll be donating some cash to [insert fave charity] instead.”
(Or, if you love gift-giving, check out my Fierce, Feminist, Badass Lady-Boss Holiday Gift Guide for sassy, meaningful gifts—including lots of items from female-run businesses.)
- Write down three victories.
What are your three biggest victories from the last year? Write them down. Share these around the dinner table with your loved ones. Or keep the list in your wallet to remind yourself, “Yeah, I’m pretty awesome.”
- Schedule more pleasure onto your calendar.
Schedule a walk. Schedule a nap. Schedule some cozy reading time on the couch. Schedule a quiet writing date—just you and your laptop—at your favorite coffee place. Schedule a pedicure. Schedule at least one pleasure-date per week—minimum—throughout December and throughout 2018, too. The more pleasure we infuse into our days, the happier and less stressed we feel. Pleasure changes lives.
- Plan the New Years Eve that you actually want.
Partying till 2am and drinking half a bottle of champagne? If that’s what you truly want, go for it! Wear sequins from head to toe and have a blast! But if you’d prefer a quieter NYE at home, give that to yourself. Consider this question—“How do I want to feel when I wake up on New Years Day?”—and then plan accordingly.
- Choose one word for the New Year.
Instead of making a massive, overwhelming list of goals and intentions, choose one word that describes how you want to feel in the New Year. Write it down. Say it aloud. Mine is: RISE.
Do everything on this list. Or do nothing. The remaining days of 2017 are up to you—however you want to feel, create your plans accordingly. Decide what you want to experience—and say “HO HO HELL NO!” to everything else. I’ll be right there with you!
