There is a lot that has to be completed during the holiday season professionally and personally. When we think of the holiday season professionally, we tend to think of the Fiscal year budget, project and product reviews, year-end production and loss analysis, and what it is that maybe improved upon or removed for the way the business performs. Workers have deadlines to have this information complete before scheduled vacations or celebrations to attend in order to focus on new pursuits after the holidays.
In a personal endeavor there is baking, celebrating, cleaning, cooking, decorating, hosting, shopping, scheduling, and possible traveling. All of these tasks can feel overwhelming! Yet every year we tend to accomplish all that is on the list of deadlines to complete. There seems to be a blind dismissal about all the pressure during the holiday season. There have been personal observations of individuals verbally arguing in a store over the last product available for a gift. There are porch pirates who are increasingly stealing gifts off of people fronts of homes as soon as delivered and they are now tailing delivery trucks. Those gifts were ordered and shopped to beat the deadline!
People seem excited to reach these professional and personal deadlines because of the excitement and joy of seeing loved ones from far and wide. Seeing the beauty the decorating during the holiday brings to the environment. Seeing the smiles of loved ones as they unwrap presents or share a meal together while telling stories to catch up for time lost. However, the overwhelming tasks deadlines associated with holiday preparations can cause the development of burnout symptoms of anxiety, depression, frustration, hopelessness, and lack of energy. We have to stay mindful that breaks are allowed and the possibility of completing the task before the deadline does exists.
As an individual who participates in the holidays tasks with deadlines to meet, I will take my breaks and allow myself to breathe when it starts to feel overwhelming. Join me in being mindful during the holiday season of reducing burnout development. HAPPY HOLIDAYS!
Voices of Burnout (VOB) 