Wrap up the work before holidays

As the holiday season approaches, I face the challenge of balancing deadlines with festivities. With projects in full swing, I’m focused on maintaining productivity while embracing the season’s spirit.

Though holiday gatherings vie for attention, I’ll share strategies to balance both work responsibilities and social engagements effectively.

Prioritize ruthlessly

Let’s face it: sometimes, getting everything done before Christmas Eve is impossible. So what should you do?

Ruthless prioritization of the must-dos, setting realistic expectations on the nice-to-dos, being okay with the did-not-dos, and recognizing they can look way easier after a good break.

How achieve this in practice:

• Create a list of ongoing projects
• Categorise tasks as Essential (must complete before holidays) / Can be postponed to January / Non-critical tasks that can be deprioritised

Housekeeping

One method to make you feel better can be to do a digital declutter before you head out on your holidays.

I dedicate an annual end-of-year day to digital housekeeping:

• Archive old emails
• Back up files
• Organize documents (check filenames, folder names, organization, etc.)
• Clean up newsletter subscriptions
• Clear out download folders
• Update productivity tools

It’s ok to “stop”

Many of us struggle to enjoy holidays because we’re caught in a mindset that constant work is necessary to prevent disaster. Yet deep down, we know this isn’t true. Breaking free from work addiction is essential for restoring balance and finding genuine peace.