Holiday Stress Coping Skills and Great Ideas for Working Moms
Are you one of the many working moms who finds it especially difficult to keep up during the incredibly busy holiday season?
You're not alone!
Studies show that lack of time is the pervading feeling around this time of year. Shortage of funds, too, can add to a busy working mom's list of worries as she tries to juggle it all.
Below find some great ideas for how moms can keep up at Christmas time, team up to tackle tasks, and other good stuff to reduce stress and increase happiness.
It takes a village. If one mom can check off a staggeringly impressive to-do list on her own, imagine what a bunch of moms can do if they band together. Working moms can coordinate with stay-home moms for success. Imagine how much less stressed your life would be if you could brave the traffic home from work knowing that a trusted mom friend was supplying needed paid or bartered help in the form of childcare, errand running, shopping, cleaning or whatever else.
"I buy, you fly". If you're stuck at work feeling stressed and strapped for time during the busy holiday season, reach out to your trusted circle of local moms. Next time everyone is tasked with something like having to run out to the store for supplies for a school project or event, have one person make a run for the entire group. The runner can deliver all supplies and pick up payment by car. Another option if cash is an issue: have your mom friends make their payment via PayPal.
Don't forget teen childcare. Seems like kids and moms go everywhere together these days, even during the busiest times of year. But is this really a good way to clear our minds and accomplish what we need to get done? Today's teens can use a break from their phones, and keeping an eye on the neighbor's kids is a great way to put holiday spending money in a young person's pocket while teaching them how to be responsible citizens.
Carpooling never looked so good. Do you wonder how you're supposed to be in 2, 3 or even 4 places at once with Christmas shopping, food prep and décor demands looming, plus all the after-school activities that kill so much of your valuable time? Arrange to have one mom oversee a group of kids during after-school activities while other moms take care of pressing responsibilities.
Swap money for time. For every mom who makes money working outside the home and has trouble balancing "all the rest of it," there is a stay-at-home mom who would appreciate being paid for her time, even for a small jobs here and there. If you feel like you need support, reach out to your local friends to see if you can set up payment for babysitting, house cleaning, decorating and even Christmas shopping. This could be a great system to set up on social media as the go-to group for help and support.
Working moms, the holiday season doesn't have to be stressful and overwhelming if we don't let it. Work with your fellow moms and dads to help find solutions so everyone can take time to enjoy and share the love.
Oh, and if you feel you need to unwind but just not sure how to make it happen this time of year, you’ll love my Peaceful Holidays Journaling Challenge! No stress here, you go at your own pace. This is one of your perks when you upgrade your subscription ;-) Give it a try today. No string attaches. Cancel anytime.