Defunct the Single Holiday Blues
The holiday season is a time of celebrating, no matter what holiday you celebrate. It is when everyone is a little kinder and more generous with their patience, money, and time. On the other hand, some individuals dread the holidays and the emotions they can bring. Nonetheless, there are several ways a person can defunct the single holiday blues.
Single All the Way
For most of the population, the holidays give the green light to indulge a little more and spend quality time with their immediate family. However, the most recent U.S. Census shows that 46% of adults are classified as single. Of course, breaking these statistics down into occupation categories is unethical. Still, it’s a well-known stereotype that working in the executive space or entrepreneurial world can make romantic relationships a tad challenging.
Now, we know this typecast isn’t true for everyone. Many happy and super-successful relationships do exist in the elite space, and these people know that having an ally when building your empire is imperative to reach the most valid form of success.
That being said, I know plenty of successful, happy, and very content singles. However, this piece focuses on anyone who gets burdened down by the holiday blues or has been too busy to make time for the social aspect of their lives recently.
Read: PREPPING YOUR BODY AND MIND FOR THE HOLIDAYS
Lack of Connection
We have all been there, where things are in flow, and it’s hard to stop what you’re doing to catch up with friends or family. You might not even notice how much time has passed since you last saw someone important to you. Good momentum can do that to the best of us. Nevertheless, as the holidays vastly approach, this is when that lack of connection can become painfully apparent to some individuals.
Although we live in a fast-paced, up-all-day-and-night world, the holidays tend to slow time down significantly and make businesses and colleagues relatively unreachable until after the new year.
What’s Missing
With each business holdup due to people out of town or spending time with families, it can make one fully aware that something or someone missing in their own life. This is why the holidays can be quite depressing and dreadful to some folks. Unfortunately, with every cup of hot chocolate or perfectly wrapped gift, it can be a painful reminder of what they don’t have in their own life.
Divorced couples might have to navigate being without their children this year. The widow will feel the hole missing in their heart is a lot deeper than usual. And the poor singles are forced to notice every jeweler advertisement while everyone else around them is getting engaged. These things don’t seem so visible when you’re working constantly, but when the holidays hit, these realizations can also hit like a ton of stale fruitcakes.
The Gift of Work-Life Balance
The importance of having a work-life balance is never more prevalent than during the holidays. Unfortunately, for those who haven’t poked their heads out of the working sandbox in months or years, the feeling of guilt or discomfort about attending a family member’s or friend’s holiday party can be overwhelming.
Other people might feel like they don’t have any friends or family left to even get an invitation to dinner or another joyous event. But I challenge those who feel lonely, shame, or dread during the holiday season to snap out of it. It may merely be an excuse to get your head back into work as soon as the new year strikes so you don’t have to process these strange emotions.
The truth is that overall health needs emotions to be processed, and we must have social connections to thrive. Personal contacts are where we can find existence in that beautiful world of work-life balance.
Read: ADVICE FOR HANDLING THE RIGORS OF A TOUGH JOB
Attitude is Everything
There are a few trusty quick tips to beat the holiday blues. First and foremost, you must first keep a good mental attitude during the holiday season. Don’t be a Grinch. Attitude is everything when it comes to what we attract in the world. It sounds simple, but be happy and attract happiness.
Say ‘Yes’ to Being Social
Next, accept an invitation. Now, I don’t mean accept a strange invitation from a Santa who smells like he’s indulged a little too much in Christmas spirits, but if a colleague invites you to a house party or a friend invites you to join their family by going to see the festival of lights, seriously consider going.
If you know it’s a safe space, but it might push you out of your comfort zone, then why not pop in for a little visit? It could be cool to take the time to learn about another culture other than your own. You never know who you’ll meet when out and about, but also, the silver lining is that you’re practically guaranteed to be surrounded by good cheer. And that’s what we all need around the holidays.
Give Back
Another way to get out of feeling dissatisfied with the holiday season is to give back to others with your time. Yes! Writing a check to a charity is entirely generous, but nothing beats going out to a toy drive or donating time to the food bank. Seeing first-hand how you can positively impact the community and put a smile on someone else’s face is beyond priceless.
Be a Friend
And here’s one more challenge for readers with a colleague or friend you know is alone for the holidays: don’t be shy in inviting them to one of your many festive events. It might be more appreciated than you can imagine.
The holidays have gotten a bit of a bad wrap over the last several years. People find them overwhelming and full of pressure, but it’s time to put a stop to that nonsense. Be the light you want to see in this world. For anyone that needs to hear this: know that you are not alone. Many cities now cater to the single population by having Friendsgiving, Christmas dinner cruises, and many other local holiday events for the solo traveler. You just need to do some research.
It’s time to bring back the season best known for unity, caring, and sharing.
Have a safe and happy holiday season!
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