Coping With Holiday Slump

It’s always this time of the year when I feel it. Holiday slump. Buyer’s remorse. Too much holiday food and alcohol. And the impending New Year.

I begin reflecting back and think of all the money I didn’t make. All the people I didn’t help. And all the meaningful conversations I didn’t have.

It’s a downward spiral.

Thankfully this is normal and an easy fix. Feeling this way is a reminder of what needs your attention. It’s motivation to prevent the guilt and remorse you’re currently experiencing.

The key is to create doable goals that are within your control. This means getting your book published, unless you’re self-publishing, shouldn’t be on your list.

But feel free to add specific things like sign up in January for that Writer’s Digest online class or register for the blogging conference in June.

Title this list Things I’ll Say Yes to In 2020:

Talk to someone new once a month.

Start an exercise class.

Ask someone you’ve been following if you can guest blog.

Tell one person about your new project.

That’s the first thing to do when your emotions are running high.

Next zoom in on what you did accomplish. It’s easy to overlook the good things we did because our brains are wired to tune into the things gone wrong. We need to parcel out the courageous acts that may have been less glamorous or Pinterest worthy, but made a huge difference in our confidence.

On this second list, labeled Brave Acts In 2019:

1. I submitted my manuscript to a dozen agents.
2. I told my father how I really felt.
3. I quit my old doctor to find one that actually listened to me.
4. I said no to activities that didn’t serve me.
5. I said yes to taking care of myself.

I bet you did something this year that you didn’t think you had the courage to do the year before.

For me, I committed to biking weekly. I started a writing critique group for children’s writers and prioritized my fiction.

These are the things we should be celebrating. You don’t need to weigh 2019 by numbers or what you accomplished. Recently on Instagram I shared something I found to be true. We often compare our before with other people’s after, which is really unfair.

It takes time and work to see results. And sometimes it’s a two steps backward before we take one step forward.

So be kind to yourself in these last days before the new year. Remember that you did a lot and are capable of doing more.

I’m here to help you in the process.

To begin, share one thing you want to work on in 2020 and another you accomplished in 2019.

Every time you worked towards your goal and feel defeated, remember your Brave Acts and let it be a reminder that you were made to do hard things.