How Frazzled Volunteer Moms Can Contribute While Maintaining Their Own Sanity & Holiday Joy
By Erin Cox, Author of One Hot Mama: The Guide to Getting Your Mind and Body Back After Baby
The fact that you’re here lets me know you’re a giver. You are involved, and you want to make the world a better place. The world just might stop revolving without you!
As a volunteering soul, you are generous with your time and energy; potentially to the point of wearing yourself out...especially with all the extra demands that the holiday season can bring. When you get to that “wiped out, cranky, overwhelmed” kind of place, you simply aren’t bringing your best to any of the important activities or volunteer efforts that mean so much to you!
Prioritizing your efforts and protecting your vitality will help you maintain your ability (and desire) to volunteer with cheer and pleasure, while fully savoring the special holiday moments with your family too. It’s all about balance and taking care of yourself so you can give your best in all you do!
5 Ways to create a peaceful, joyful, and balanced holiday season!
1) Before you say “yes” to anything, take a minute to see how the request makes you feel. Does it make your heart have palpitations, or your stomach twinge? If you are already maxed out, it’s okay to say “no,” with grace and love. Rational people will completely respect you for setting boundaries and honoring your own time and wellness.
2) List out the top 10 most important things in your life, such as your children, faith, relationship with your husband, friendships, volunteering, hobbies, exercising, etc. Put them in order of importance, and then think about how you actually spend your time. Are you spending your time and energy in alignment with what’s important to you? If not, what do you need to change?
3) Try to dump one or two time-sucking activities that you don’t enjoy and pull you away from living a balanced life – so you’ll have time to focus your energy on the things that really matter to you…like volunteering at your kid’s school.
4) Schedule your week out every Sunday evening. Sounds a bit tedious, but if you are in control of your calendar and manage your time, you can make sure to schedule in your workouts, date nights, time alone, or whatever it is that makes your life better…in addition to the volunteer efforts that feel right to you.
5) Lighten your standards a bit. If you crave more time with your family and doing things that make you feel like an awesome mom, but spend two hours each day cleaning and tidying, see if you can let your standards slide a bit.
If the joy has been sucked out for you, then really take a few moments to evaluate how you spend your time. You should feel happy a majority of the time. You should feel like life is good and as though you are living on purpose. If you feel down, overwhelmed, and dissatisfied a majority of the time, take a closer look at what is off, so you have the liveliness and happy disposition to continue to make the world a better place!
I’d love to hear from you! How do you maintain your sanity when life is nuts? Please connect with me at www.facebook.com/ErinCoxAuthor or www.erincox.com.
