UNITED STATES—The holidays are over, and things are starting to simmer down a bit, which means, time to get back into the groove. Yes, Christmas is over, and the New Year has been celebrated. The kiddos are back in school, those vacations that most had the luxury of enjoying are over and people are back at the office or the workplace.
It does take a bit of time to get back in the groove of things when the holidays pound you back-to-back. Especially for those of us who work in an industry that is particularly busy between October, November, December and early January. For 2024/2025 it was odd because Christmas and New Year both fell in the middle of the week.
So, Christmas Eve was a Tuesday, so most people had that day off, Christmas and then the day after Christmas. The same schedule echoed for New Year’s Eve, New Year’s Day and the day after as well. Most people I know had the past two weeks off or simply were in that I don’t want to work mode, and that is never a good thing because it’s not something that you can easily shake. I like a schedule though, and it is not so much about routine, it is about knowing what to expect.
When things are chaotic, they can be a bit draining on the body and by the time you finally manage to catch your breath, the chaos starts up all over again. At the top of the list is that debt from the holidays. Yes, you probably spent a bit more than you expected as a result of trying to purchase gifts for the family and friends. The credit cad statements are arriving and some are feeling a bit of shock, but you gotta have a plan; tackle the debt best you know how, and the key is NOT TO USE THOSE CREDIT CARDS! The temptation can be strong, but guess what, the only way to rid yourself of the debt is to not create more debt.
In addition, all those crazy sales that were obvious the past 60 days are pretty much over. Yes, if you stumble into some retailers you might pick up a few items on clearance because the company is aiming to get rid of that Xmas merchandise. At the same time, you have to ask yourself, are these items I truly need? I would argue about 95 percent of the time you don’t.
With that said, kids being back in school kick off that routine of preparing lunches at night, then you have to worry about the kiddos coming home from school quite hungry. Yes, it never amazes me the appetite that kids have. I do keep forgetting that most tend to eat lunch around 11 a.m. or 12 p.m. By the time they get out of school, it’s 4 p.m. So yeah that measures why they would be hungry. So load up the household with those snacks because you’re going to need them.
For the adults, work mode is in full effect, whether you work five days a week at the office or you’re working five days a week from your home office. That engine is moving, and it probably is not stopping anytime soon. If you have that Personal Time off, use it if you feel a bit exhausted, especially if you didn’t have a plethora of time off during the holidays. There is this crazy belief that EVERYONE always gets the holidays off, but that is not always the case, as some companies don’t offer those days off to their staff.
It might take a week or two to fully immerse yourself back into the groove, but trust once you find yourself in that comfort zone, all is good.
Written By Jason Jones
