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Guest post by Cass Mullane, Creative Innovator, Right-Brain Business Plan® Licensed Facilitator, Prosper Creatively, LLC

The holidays are upon us!

Most of us get pretty busy during the holidays. Whether it’s preparing for business events, ramping up the retail or just getting together with family and friends, our calendars fill up quickly. But there’s nothing that says you cannot choose to simply cruise through the holidays. In order to set yourself up for smooth sailing, here are five ideas you might think about implementing:

  • Set the expectation NOW that you’re going to have a fun, relaxing holiday season. Setting this expectation now, and holding yourself to it, can work wonders toward having a good mindset throughout the holidays. Remember that you, and only you, are in charge of your thinking. Quality thinking will help you make quality decisions and quality decisions will help keep the stress to a minimum.
  • Make smarter choices. Do you typically overspend, overeat, overextend yourself during the holidays? Maybe it’s time to make some smarter choices. You can still have plenty of fun without over-anything-ing. Just make one smarter choice in each area each week. Keep your money in your wallet. Leave some food on the plate. Say no to something and preserve that blank space in your calendar. That’s it. The cumulative effect of these small, simple choices will serve you well. And who knows, maybe you’ll carry these smarter choices into 2020 and reap significant positive benefits over the course of the year!
  • Manage the Mind Monkey™ noise inside your head. If you’re making a change this year to adopt the expectation that you’re going to have a fun, relaxing holiday season, you’re bound to have times when a Mind Monkey™ starts to play an old tape in your brain, like “the holidays are ‘always’ so stressful.” The keys to managing the noise are 1) identify that the old tape is starting, 2) interrupt that tape and 3) immediately replace that tape with something better. Remember, you’re starting a brand new story for the holidays, one that is full of fun and relaxation. The old story no longer applies, so toss it and make your new story a great story.
  • Get enough sleep. As you probably know, most adults need a minimum of 7 hours of quality sleep each night. Are you getting your sleep? The physical, cognitive and emotional effects of extended sleep deprivation are serious. A hard look at what’s currently on your plate might be appropriate. What changes do you need to make in order to get the sleep you need? Now here’s the real question, what changes will you actually choose to make?
  • Go out and DO something fun. When you do something fun, lots of good endorphins get released into your body and you feel great. Talk about a 100% natural stress reliever! Something fun could be anything from active winter sports to a meditative spa treatment, to anything in between. You pick what’s right for you. The key is to go out a DO it, not just dream about it.

So be proactive in taking actions that will ensure you’re setting yourself up for a wonderful holiday season. Set the expectation now, make good choices along the way, pay attention to what’s going on in your head, take care of yourself and have some fun! You can choose to enjoy smooth sailing.

©2019 Cass Mullane – All rights reserved

Like many great innovators, Cass Mullane has the unique combination of being a strong creative as well as a strategic thinking MBA. After departing the corporate world in 2004, Cass built a thriving business and personal coaching practice that focuses on accountability and solid business skills for right brainers and creatives. She specializes in helping you tame your Mind Monkey™ while enjoying healthy doses of creativity and play in your business and your life. Tapping into this whole-brain approach has helped to make Cass a highly valued coach with an international clientele.

Cass’ new #1 International Bestseller, The Cool Stuff Jar: Three Simple Ways to Live a Happier Life, is available on Kindle! You can also follow Cass on Facebook!

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