The holidays can be chaotic in so many ways. Because of this chaos, it’s difficult to stay organized for a typical day. Then you throw in all the things that need to be done to prepare for the festivities, and it can get really crazy.
The premise to stay organized during the holidays, is that you have your spaces and time in order to begin with. If not, I encourage you to check out this blog post. It may help you to get organized as a starting point.
You may have noticed that I mentioned having your spaces and time in order – time being the key. When you practice time management, it makes it so much easier to keep your things organized as well. Creating a schedule and adhering to it is critical when practicing time management, and to stay organized during the holidays and all year round.
Below are a few strategies that I use to stay on track, check them out, they may help you too!
To-do list
This is the first thing to tackle to stay organized. Keep a list of all your routine tasks. This should not be difficult as you perform these tasks regularly. Some examples could be, cleaning the house, laundry, grocery shopping, walking the dog, etc.
Create a separate to-do list for all of the tasks required to prepare for the holidays. Some examples could be, creating menus, gift shopping, putting up decorations, baking, sending holiday cards, wrapping gifts, etc.
Schedule
Next on your list is to create or adjust your existing schedule. Schedule all the tasks on your to-do list for routine tasks. Since you perform them regularly, you should have a good understanding of how long each task will take to complete, and factor in adequate time.
Schedule all the tasks on your to-do list for holiday tasks. Since you may or may not have performed all of these tasks in the past, you may have to take a guess at how long these tasks may take to complete and factor in adequate time.
Your schedule needs to be kept close, reviewed frequently, and updated as circumstances change…and they will change. A lot of people keep their schedule on their phone, since we all seem to be attached to them these days.
Get help
Now that you have all your routine and holiday tasks listed and scheduled, determine whether it’s feasible to get everything done routinely, and for the holidays with the time you have available. The key here is to not take on too much yourself. If you do, you will become overwhelmed and stressed out and then you won’t enjoy the holiday festivities.
If you find that it’s all too much, ask for help. There are various ways to get the help you need. You can delegate some tasks to members of your household as appropriate. Older kids can help with routine tasks such as cleaning and laundry. They can also help put up decorations and wrap gifts.
Another option is to hire out those tasks that you may not want to do, have the capability to do, or have the time to do. Whatever option, or options you choose, getting help with everything you need to do can be a lifesaver in terms of keeping your stress to a minimum and to stay organized during the holidays.
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