Protecting Your Time Over the Holidays:

As the year comes to a close, it seems as though we should be winding down. But often, it’s the complete opposite. With looming deadlines, festive gatherings with family, friends, and colleagues, and last-minute arrangements to make, managing your time effectively can become challenging amidst the hustle and bustle. This is when setting firmer boundaries can come in incredibly handy. When we talk about boundaries, they can take many different forms, including physical, emotional, and time boundaries. Here, we outline some time boundaries you can establish to enjoy the festive season without feeling overwhelmed.

1. Plan Personal Time

The holidays can be a wonderful time to spend with loved ones, but it’s also a great opportunity to enjoy some moments of relaxation alone before the new year kicks off. This can be especially helpful if you have a busy few weeks ahead with guests visiting your home to celebrate festivities.

To ensure you get some downtime, try to schedule specific periods in your day just for yourself. This could be a 20-minute walk, a 15-minute pamper session, or simply some time to unwind and catch up on your favourite TV shows.

2. Limit Your Screen Time

Many of us are guilty of spending too much time on our devices. While technology offers many benefits and can greatly enhance our lives, it can often lead to losing track of time, especially when scrolling through social media.

However, setting daily app limits can help you get back your time. Plus, once you step away from your phone for longer periods, you’ll likely realise just how much time is often wasted. This limit doesn’t have to be drastic by any means. Perhaps there’s just one particular app you have trouble staying away from, requiring a restriction of 30 mins or so a day. By setting these time boundaries for yourself, you can be on your way to creating a more balanced and fulfilling holiday season.

3. Communicate Your Working Hours

During this period, people’s working hours often stray from their usual routine. Many colleagues will be out of the office, or taking advantage of annual leave, enjoying more days off during the week. While this might require you to assist your colleagues by supporting them with some of their tasks in their absence, it’s important not to feel obligated to take on everything. This includes avoiding the habit of working extra hours to make up for your team being away.

Of course, this might not always be possible, especially when there is a large team project underway. However, you may find it beneficial to communicate clearly with those who will be affected by your availability. This can be done by specifying your working hours and when you will be contactable. The sooner you communicate this, the better. You could include this information in your email footer or set a ‘do not disturb’ status too. This way, you can manage expectations and maintain a healthy work-life balance during the festive season.

4. Set Email Response Times

Emails can seem like they’re never-ending, especially during this busy time of year, whether they’re work-related or personal messages about holiday plans. It’s important to acknowledge that you can’t always keep up with them all at once, and there needs to be a point where you stop.

Consider scheduling specific times in your diary for replying to emails. This approach allows you to manage your inbox without it taking over your entire day. For urgent emails, you can address them as they come in, but for less critical tasks, set them aside for your designated email time. This way, you can ensure you’re not spending all your time on emails and can focus on other important tasks. By setting these boundaries, you’ll be able to work more efficiently and reduce stress during this time.

5. Prioritise Tasks

Just like emails, there will always be tasks to complete. With there always being something to do at work and home, things can become overwhelming, seeing work pile up. And if you do plan on taking some time off over the holidays, it can be tempting to try and get everything done to avoid returning to hundreds or thousands of unticked jobs.

However, don’t underestimate the power of getting organised and effectively managing your tasks. Several prioritisation techniques that can help you stay on top of your workload:

1. Eat the Frog: Tackle the most complex tasks first.
2. Eisenhower Matrix: Separate tasks by their importance and urgency.
3. ABCDE Method: Assign tasks a letter grade based on their importance.
4. Chunking: Schedule blocks of time to complete specific tasks.