At this time of year, it seems like you’re drowning in things to do. What presents to buy. What events to attend. Finals to study for. Group projects to inquire about. I know how frustrating this can be, and recently I came across the book “Listful Thinking” by Paula Rizzo and it changed my life for the better. Essentially it is a book about lists and the power of lists. So, below are seven lists to help you get your life together this holiday season:
1. Presents To-Buy: things you need to buy for others in your life for various holiday reasons.
2. Cards To Write: being broke and wanting to give everyone you care about something special sucks, but handwritten cards are the answer–keep this list to track who you should/need to write cards to.
3. Thank-You’s To Write: as presents begin trickling in, I am sure that you will not write a thank-you immediately upon receiving the said gift. So, to avoid having regrets about not writing a thank-you note halfway through January, simply keep a list to track who you need to thank.
4. Wish List: I’m sure you’ve all had those moments where you’ve had things you have wanted all year long, but once Christmas hits, your mind goes blank upon hearing the words “so what do you want for Christmas?”. Keeping a list of things you’d like (make sure there are small items on there, too) will help in situations like these.
5. Spending Tracker: the holiday season is brutal for our wallets. Tracking your spending tends to help ease the stress that the holiday season brings money-wise. Once you see that you’ve hit your limit (set a limit!) find ways to creatively gift things to special people in your life.
6. Homemade Gift Ideas: this goes along with the list mentioned in the last point (5, for reference). Sometimes (honestly, most of the time) making homemade presents is the best route for gift-giving. This being because (a) it’s cheaper (b) it’s more heartfelt and © it is stress relieving to do crafts (for most people).
7. Miscellaneous Tasks To Complete/General To-Do List: these include things like “do the dishes” or “pick up dry-cleaning”–things that don’t really constitute having their own list.