How to Maintain Your Motivation & Focus While Enjoying the Holiday Season

Holiday planning, gift shopping, partying, hosting, and maintaining holiday traditions, while trying to finish out the year strong at work is a lot to manage. As the holiday season approaches, it's easy to be captivated by all of the holiday lights that twinkle aglow or immersed in all the festive fun. Even the best of us will find ourselves losing our focus and motivation the closer we get to the holiday season. By the time Mid-December comes, you might find that while you're at work, your mind is far, far away having a heyday in holiday land. This phenomenon is known as the "holiday click-off," where you're still clocking in hours but little work is being done.

The holiday hustle and bustle is real, with so many activities, to-do’s, responsibilities, demands, and expectations competing for your attention. While the holiday season is a joyous time, it can also be coupled with feelings of sadness and grief for some as they navigate a hard season or a season marked by loss. With so much going on, it can be easy to lose your motivation, focus, and momentum amid all the holiday chaos, and much of the stress and distractions we experience during this season can lead to a drop in productivity and work performance. Here are five tips for maintaining your focus and motivation while still enjoying the holiday season.

Remind yourself of your why.

It's easy to lose sight of your goals when there is nothing to ground what you are working towards. Your why does that. It serves as your guiding light, moving you forward with purpose and direction. Your why consists of your purpose, vision, and goals. Your purpose serves as the reason and foundation of your existence, your vision gives you direction, and your goals allow you to focus on the actions that support you in executing your purpose and manifesting your vision. When you find yourself mentally checking out during all the holiday hustle and bustle, do not forget what it is that you are working towards, and if you are having a hard time figuring out what it is, start to seek it out. Whether you are working towards achieving a significant impact, saving for a home for your family, breaking generational curses, or pursuing work opportunities that make a difference, remembering your why will fuel you to keep going.

Schedule time for rest and festive fun.

While this time of the year can be the busiest, the magic, awe, and wonder simultaneously invite us to be present by slowing us down to savor and celebrate these magical moments. To ensure that you are fully present at home and work, make margin for rest and festive fun in your schedule. Prioritize your life and work by setting healthy boundaries and taking time off work. Scheduling time off can help you avoid the burnout, overwhelm, and weariness that can come with all the chaos of the holiday season. Rest, plan, run holiday errands, and spend time with the ones who matter to you most. Putting time on the calendar allows you to be fully present where you are while giving you something to look forward to.

Prioritize your projects.

Just as you should prioritize rest this season, it is equally important to prioritize your projects so that the most important things are getting done. Meet with your manager to identify which projects should be prioritized and which others can be potentially put off until post-season. Then take it a step further by applying the same prioritization to your personal life. Productivity Coach Casey Moore encourages moving non-urgent projects and to-dos to the New Year can cause psychological relief by not only removing burdens but making the holidays more joyful and energizing you to tackle your priorities.

Organize and manage your workload.

After prioritizing your projects and to-dos, organization is key to planning and staying mentally prepared and productive during this time of year. Stay on top of your workload by setting or planning your deadlines, key milestones, actions, and resources needed to complete your projects. Using a work management system like ClickUp, you can set goals, milestones, and timelines, and collaborate with your team while managing multiple projects. You can also utilize the tool by creating a separate and private workspace to manage your personal/home projects and to-dos. Having a comprehensive list puts your mind at ease by giving you a vision for all you need to accomplish and breaking it into small, manageable, and achievable action steps.

Maintain your mental health and well-being.

This time of the year can be just as stressful as it is busy. Over 44% of people report being stressed during the holidays, while 18% report being "very stressed," attributing finances as well as being over-scheduled, and overworked on top of the holiday shopping as major holiday stressors. Coping with personal stress, whether due to holiday planning, finances, grief, or other private matters, is already challenging enough when combined with workplace stress, no wonder that holiday cheers can turn into holiday sneers, as workplace expert Jennifer Moss states. Amid the holiday craze, don't forget to prioritize and maintain your mental health and well-being this season. Take time off, log off social media, meditate, nourish and move your body, and seek the appropriate support to care for yourself. During busy seasons, many of us place ourselves and our care on the back burner. Reduce the likelihood of overwhelm and burnout by prioritizing your mental health and well-being this holiday season.

Keep in mind that this season of celebration should be joyous. While all the gift planning, shopping for loved ones, planning travel arrangements, and wrapping up your end-of-the-year planning may have you in a holiday tizzy, ready to click off and enjoy the magic of the season, you can still end the year on a high note. As we head into the busy holiday season, maintain your motivation and focus during this holiday season. When you start losing focus, remind yourself of your why and prioritize what matters most. Get ahead of your projects by planning, managing, and organizing your workload in advance. Prioritize your health by taking time to care for your well-being. Doing so will help you enjoy the season and minimize the post-holiday hangover and blues.