Stupid Things People Do to Mess Up Their Holidays

Thanksgiving is behind us and Christmas and Hanukkah are on the horizon. It’s the season of family gatherings, and the advice I gave in 2000 in my Perspective magazine continues to be relevant 24 years later!

1. Party-going

   The chances are you’ll have to attend at least one office party. You may be stuck seated next to the guy who won’t stop talking or find yourself in a big room surrounded by unfamiliar faces, but grin and bear it. It’s only a few hours once a year and it’s probably an obligation your spouse can’t afford to miss. So, make the best of it. Tag along with your spouse and contribute to the conversations. You’ll find that time really does fly when you’re joyfully doing something for someone else.

2. Budget Busting

   Going broke at holiday time seems to be an American tradition. The best solution is to first determine what you can afford. Second, make a shopping trip based on that amount. Third, stay within your budget. A good way to reduce your holiday overhead is to make gifts. Any grandparent would rather have a hand-drawn picture from a three-year-old grandson more than an expensive gift mom or dad bought in a store.

3. Running Ragged

   During the holidays, too many families overbook themselves. Between the holiday shopping frenzy, the office parties and parties given by friends and the shuttling to and from the homes of relatives, we run ourselves ragged trying to satisfy too many people. One family we know has a multi-year schedule, worked out in advance with other relatives. Everyone agreed that it made no sense to try and see everyone everywhere. So each year, the host for Thanksgiving and Christmas rotates.

4. Extra Eating

   Let’s face it, we eat way too much during the holidays. And that wouldn’t be so bad, but we also eat the wrong things. At this time of year, we have Aunt Ethel who brings over her indescribable fudge, our coworker Bruce with his thigh-enhancing vegetable dip (which we must eat because he makes it only once a year) and cousin Rachel, whose latkes are so scrumptious, we simply have to have seconds. And thirds. Make this year that only the turkey is stuffed.

5. Missing Meanings

   At this time of year, it is important to remind ourselves of the real meaning of our celebrations. For any religious person, there is a renewal of our faith that often gets lost in the gift-giving. This year, vow to concentrate on the big picture. Concern yourself with holiday values, not holiday bargains.

Keep an eye out for tomorrow’s Daily Dose to read the next 5 holiday no-no’s on my list !

🎧 Avoiding Shattered Holidays

Hit ‘pause’ on the family drama and click ‘play’ on this Deep Dive episode for ways to gracefully avoid the kind of tensions that crop up when the holidays approach.

I Need to Be Healthy for My Family

This letter from Heather describes how she stopped making mistakes #3 & #4 on my above list, “Stupid Things People Do to Mess Up Their Holidays.” Read how she stopped ignoring her health after this ‘a-ha’ moment and dedicated her willpower to a better quality of life:

I was listening to you talk about how motivation is an issue of character, not weakness or victimhood. It was such an a-ha moment for me.

I have been married to my husband for 10 years and I have put on a decent amount of weight since our wedding day.

My husband has never wavered in the amount of love he shows me, but I often feel guilty that I've let myself go. He deserves me at my best. I've started my weight loss journey to get back to being the woman I was when we got married, and I'm currently down 47 pounds.

Hearing what you had to say about willpower has opened my eyes.

It's about character and doing what I need to do for my husband and daughter! I need to be healthy and ensure to the best of my ability that I'll be around for both of them for a long time. So, I'm going forward with a new perspective, and I thank you for that! Keep doing all that you do, you truly do make a difference!

💌 Are you making a change for the better?

Tell me about it by sending an email to [email protected]!

💡 Thought of the Day 

"Now, go do the right thing!"

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