Once fall sets in and nature prepares to celebrate by donning its brightest red, orange, and yellow colors – for most of us, it signals the start of the Holiday season 😊

It is typical, to start planning for the gifts-to-give and the to-do lists for November and December. Planning for parties to organize, to attend, and updating our calendars to avoid social conflicts. It can be a very stressful time, with multiple balls in the air to juggle and to continue running around with our day-to-day work life/chores. Selecting and buying multiple different gifts is not something most of us really look forward to ☹

In your attempts to take care of (and please) everyone around you – Don’t forget YOUrself.  You need to also take care of yourself, to recoup and re-energize for the coming year. Life’s hamster’s wheel will not pause for anyone and will continue spinning over the next year ☹. We cannot miss a step. This year is almost over, you have worked hard every day and you need to reward (take care of) yourself. It is perfectly fine to block off some time – just for yourself – in your calendar; for any fun tasks you may want to do all by yourself, or with someone special. This might even require RSVPing a NO to good friends, to free up some very busy, high-value weekend time.

During my job/working phase, I made it a point to use the last 2 weeks in December to recalibrate my professional life. For most businesses, this is quiet time, and many of our work colleagues have taken time off – so fewer/no regular daily meetings, etc. I would catch up on everything I had pushed to the bottom of my priority pile, update my resume, and have some quiet introspection – am I headed in the direction I want to get to?

At a personal level, the same level of review/assessment is required. Identify what makes you happy and, are you taking care of yourself? What changes would you like for yourself in the coming year? Most of us with families are so focused on our relationships and children and their needs. Who will take care of your needs? ONLY, you know what gaps need to be bridged in your life.

So enjoy the HOLIDAY time and have fun, as long as you remember to take care of yourself.

Wish everyone a Happy and Prosperous 2025 New Year. May all your dreams come true!