On a personal note, I renamed my “Motivational Monday” posts to “Motivational Moments” so as to not put a strict goal on myself.
This week’s’ Motivational Moment focuses on recommendations on what to do after Christmas or the Holidays in general.
Take breaks when you’re feeling too much.
What happened:
Every year around November till the start of the new year, we find ourselves immersed in the chaos of the holiday season. There were awkward store hours for the last-minute shoppers. People had to deal with the chaotic nature that comes out of others during the holiday season. Schedules become tighter, and the workload may have increased to meet deadlines for the year-end.
What you can do now:
Congratulations on getting through Christmas. We’re now in the final leg of the holiday season with New Year’s being less than a week away. It’s once again the perfect time to reset, but the pressure of tying up loose ends may be creeping up on you. If you’re working after Christmas, you may be focused on deadlines to meet before the year end. If you’re not, you still feel like you need to resolve your tickets before ringing in for the New Year.
Remember that breaks are just as important during the holiday season as they are in normal practice. Taking a step back when you are feeling overwhelmed helps us recollect ourselves, our senses, and our mindset. Breaks can be a great way to create a separate space for planning. Instead of multi-tasking, breaks can also help bring the mind back to focus in mono-tasking. My favorite part about breaks is when I can bask in the calm, simplicity of nothingness to recharge and energize myself.
If you have deadlines to meet before the work week ends, take a break to figure out a plan of action. If you are going to be a busy body to host a New Year’s Eve party, take a break to settle your butterflies and then plan your party. If you are going to be all over the place this holiday weekend, take a break to relax and focus on yourself first. You’ll have a much more enjoyable New Year’s Eve when you allow yourself to take care of yourself first.
Appreciate what you love and enjoy.
What happened:
The holidays bring out people’s merry spirit to try and reconnect with friends, family, and loved one. It can bring the best and worst in all of us (you remember I mentioned the holiday chaos). Emotions are big during the holiday season, and please drink eggnog responsibly during this time as you can find yourself on a roller-coaster of emotions with the people around you.
What you can do now:
Even if you had drama or not, you certainly can love and appreciate all year round. And that’s exactly what I’m asking of from my readers. Appreciate what you love and enjoy and keep doing so after the holidays end. The holidays can feel like the best time to show your appreciation; you go out of your way to see the people you care about and you may have given them gifts for the season. Don’t let the appreciation stop right after the New Year begins.
Appreciation means valuing something for what its worth. This can be done in the form of love languages. While our wallets may not be up for giving gifts after Christmas, you can show your appreciation to the people you love by regularly checking in on them and meeting up for coffee in spare time. If you enjoy cooking, dedicate quality time to practice cooking new recipes. You can also do acts of service if your passionate about volunteering and helping others.
When you appreciate what you value, you give love back to what has given you love. The act of appreciation is a great practice to understanding the value of your relationship, hobbies, and actions. I found myself growing my relationships in 2018 by showing my appreciation all year around.
Love yourself for who you are now but also strive for a better self for the future.
What happened:
During the holidays, you can find yourself talking to people about yourself. When you reconnect with loved ones, you update them on yourself and what you have been up to. When meeting new acquaintances or mutual friends, you introduce yourself and give a brief profile of yourself. Reflecting these actions you find yourself getting to know more about others. You hear about what they want to tell you: who they are, what they do for a living, what they like, and accomplishments.
What you can do now:
These interactions can lead to internally comparing ourselves to our peers. When you compare your life with another person’s, you have to take control of your opinion about yourself. If you take it negatively, you devalue yourself because of your so-called lack of (what you think is) success. The best ways to take control of your opinion is by being proactive: love yourself in the now and take that love to make a better you in for future.
Love yourself for who you are now. This is a popular idea among YA authors, millennials, and RuPaul’s Drag Race, but it’s popular because it’s a valuable remark. As I mentioned in the previous section, appreciating what you love can help improve and understand the value of your relationships to help grow and improve them. How do you love yourself? Appreciate yourself like a relationship. You can utilize the five love languages to care for yourself. For example, words of affirmation can be in the form of journaling about yourself and what you enjoy about yourself. Gift giving is treating yourself every special occasion to a purchase. More on the five love languages here.
The love of your current self should be the driving force for your future, and you should always be striving to better yourself for the future you want. To strive is to put work and effort into your goal. When you show love to yourself, you find areas of yourself that you want to improve. To improve on those areas and get to the future you want, it’s essential for you to love yourself for who you are right now. The passion you have for you and your life becomes the best motivational driver to get to your goals.
As as recommendation, take the time to create S.M.A.R.T. goals for the future instead of New Year’s Resolution and create a plan to meet those goals. This can be a great guideline for what you want to accomplish in 2019.
This is Lina 
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