One of the most expected times of the year is the holiday season. Yet some of us experience a lot of stress and an overall sense of unhappiness. Let’s find out how to feel happy during the holidays.
The first step to be happy during the holidays is to have clear expectations. Ask yourself, what do I like to experience during the holidays?
- Spend more time with family
- Relax
- Enjoy the season
- Travel
- Get a seasonal job
There is one thing that all these options have in common.
They are very vague.
Ask yourself, what does it mean to spend more time with family? Will I have dinner everyday at home, will we eat out together a couple of times, or will I do arts and crafts, bake, and sing with my kids?
The more specific you are, the more you will enjoy this time. What experiences would you like to have regarding:
- Gifts
- Celebrations
- Spending free time
- Responsibilities
Moreover, if you don’t take the time to define your expectations about how to feel happy during the holidays, you soon will be swept into the busyness of:
- buying
- decorating
- participating in holiday activities
- getting together with stressful people
and repeating the same exhausting routine from previous years.
If these seem like difficult decisions, here you can find some tips.
Once you know what you would like to experience you can share this information with the people around you so that they also know what to expect.
10 Tips on How to Feel Happy During the Holiday Season.
1 – Give from your heart
If you want to be happy during these holidays, the best approach is to give and expect nothing in return. Giving is not only about gifts.
You can give your:
- Time
- Attention
- Skills
- Appreciation
- Help
- Advise
Many times, our family members want us to do things with them that we don’t enjoy, and we usually find an excuse or a way out.
Maybe this holiday season decide to spend an hour sharing an activity that you don’t particularly like, but the other person would love to do with you.
Look around and find some items to donate to charity.
Spend some special moments with people you love by giving them your undivided attention.
In addition, any small giving gesture can boost your happiness during the holiday season.
2 – Spend on experiences, not on things
Researchers such as Thomas Gilovich from Cornell University, found that once our basic needs are met, buying experiences will bring more happiness than buying things.
Make a list of experiences you would like to have during the holidays:
- Enjoying the snow
- Spending some time with your significant other without the kids
- Decorating the house
- Cooking or baking some holiday food
- Visiting some special places or people
- Watching the fireplace
Think about the experiences you would like to enjoy during the holidays to make sure you plan accordingly.
Furthermore, having a plan will prevent you from impulsive behavior like seeing something that you like and buying it, even though you will not use it.
3 – Spend time with your loved ones
Our social connections are important to our wellbeing.
Scientists say that happiness depends a lot on the type of interpersonal relationships we establish. So, we can safely assume that a great way to feel happy during the holiday season is to share time with people we love.
4 – Keep away from debt
There is no need to go broke during the holidays. Debt can make you feel extremely unhappy and prevents you from enjoying the celebrations.
Start with a holidays budget so that you have an idea of what you will buy and how much you will spend.
There are so many holiday specials, sales, and promotions that it’s not easy to stay within a budget. Consequently, if you take your time to write a list with the items you are planning to buy and the approximate amount of money, it will be more likely to stay within those limits.
There is nothing worse than to end the holidays with a lot of things that clutter your space and more credit card debt.
Therefore, anticipate how much money you will be spending to feel happy before, during, and after the holiday season.
5 – Spend time in nature
It is a fact that holidays can turn out to be stressful. This happens because we have to find extra time for so many activities.
A good way to feel happy during the holidays is to spend some time in nature. A walk in the park or a forest will offer a much-needed sense of relaxation.
6 – Don’t forget to take pictures
Having pictures of your loved ones, will help you remember all the fun you had together. A way to feel happy through the holiday season is to take pictures of the best moments in the company of your family or friends.
7- Leave the best for the end of the holiday
Psychologists affirm that when the most positive event happens at the end of the holiday season, we tend to remember it with even more happiness. This year save the best for last!
8 – Keep your body active
No matter of the time of the year we are in, a good exercise routine can boost our happiness. Allow yourself at least 30 minutes a day for a walk, a jog or a simple exercise routine. This will help you to feel happy during the holiday season.
Here you can find out how exercising can make you happy.
9 – Focus on frequency
We mistakenly think that the intensity of a positive event is what makes us happy. Instead, the reality is that the frequency is what counts. Small joys can have a beneficial impact on our mood and happiness.
10 – Enjoy every moment
Stay present during each moment during the holidays. Use your senses to enjoy the smells, the sights, the sounds, and the taste of the holidays.
Furthermore, keep your mind focused on what you are doing at the moment.
Here you can find out how being mindful can make you happy.
If you want to have a happy, stress-free holiday, take a moment to breath.
Allow yourself to relax and enjoy the company of others.
Give and expect nothing in return.
Be yourself and cherish every little moment.
This is how you can feel happy through the holiday season.
What are your plans or tips for a happy holiday season? Share them in the comments below.
You May Also Like
Oh, I love holidays because that’s the time for me to spend more time with my loved ones and with my friends and I always make sure that I will enjoy every holidays that I have. Thank you for the tips.
Great list of ways to enjoy the holiday and the meaning of being with family and friends. Always good to remember to not get caught up in the craziness!
Beautiful and powerful reminders. We all need to practice at least a few from this list!
I love every single item on your 10 tips, I feel like they are all interwind with each other. This will serve as a reminder. Thanks for sharing.
Being able to have a break and spend time with family as well is friends is why I feel happy during the holiday season. It is a great time to just relax for a moment.
I am always happy during holidays because I am able to have more time with my family, to visit my parents and to relax. So there is no reason for me to be sad during holiday season.
Holiday seasons are the best. I give maximum time to my son. He is very happy. Then going out with family and enjoy. A complete relaxation from office.
This post comes just in time, because seriously I have such mixed emotions at holiday times. I really needed this advice!
This is awesome and right on time ahead of the holidays…Holidays can be very very messy for sure lol…
The Holiday season is my favorite time of year. It’s a time to gather around food and with relatives and friends.
Ohh seasonal jobs are lots of fun! I also enjoy making holiday treats and surprising others with fun gifts (often handmade). The holidays are a wonderful opportunity to bless others.
Excellent list. When gift-giving, I always try to give something thoughtful rather than something rushed. Sometimes, I’ll buy someone a gift a few months in advance because I see it in a store and think of them.
Great tips, i get very nostalgic because my family is in another county, but I do try to enjoy the time with my friends
I am all for the holiday vibes sometimes I don’t know why it can be so challenging. It’s the perfect time to relax, celebrate and just enjoy family, friends and just being nice in general.
I look forward to the holidays especially hosting gatherings.
I never thought about getting specific with what we want for the holidays. My husband and I gifted mostly experiences to our boys last year and we have been doing them throughout the year. It’s been a great way to explore Houston and to spend time together as a family.
Traveling with a family can be fun and also bond the family together. I love your idea so much. The most important thing is to spend time together, even at home doing something like baking or working out.
Oooo so many great tips!! I love the holidays!! My hubby however is someone who need to sit back and relax. He gets so stressed
For me sometimes the holiday season can be a bit overwhelming so lists like this is important for me to stay in focus and be happy
These are fantastic tips to help those who might suffer during the holidays. I often get down during the holiday season and will use some of these to boost my mood.
Great reminders that take it a bit further. I like the idea of giving experiences. We are into this right now as well. It’s like a gift that keeps on giving!
This is such a valuable post and sometimes easier said than done! Sometimes the holidays can be stressful, I know I’m definitely going to find value in the reminder! Thank you for sharing!
Staying active is so key. If eel like I eat terrible during the holidays but continually working out helps.
Thank you for all of the wonderful tips on staying happy during the holidays… it is a stressful time for sure 🙂 I fortunately do not have an issue until after New Years…. when all of the hype winds down 😉
The holidays can be so stressful and overwhelming. These are such great tips for overcoming that and focusing on the joy.
Such great tips for this holiday season! I agree with spending time with family and give the gift of experiences and not material things
Pretty decent tips! I think these will help you to learn more about how to make you happy.
These are the great tips for a holiday destination. Thanks for sharing the post.
I love festive and holiday season!!! This is so much fun and that time of the year when we can spend time with family
I’m totally with the spending on experiences and not things element of giving. I think creating memories always makes for a better gift than something tangible. Although sometimes you need that tangible thing.
Some people feel lonely if there are no loving people around especially during holidays – a time of family reunion. You made it easier to find a refreshing vibe during holiday time.
There are some really good tips here on how to enjoy the holidays. Enjoying the snow is a must xx
I agree the holidays can be pretty stressful! I usually keep a full plate, and the “after holiday” crash is real and I usually get the winter blues at the start of the new year. This year I am determined to work on more me time to help de-stress.
You have covered so many wonderful points in this post. The key thing is to not make the holidays all about presents and materialistic things – which ultimately are pretty shallow. The most important thing is to invest time and a genuine interest with those who you love. Also, love the points about spending some time in nature and ensuring that you leave the best for the end of the holiday. Ending on a high note is always great!
These are great tips for staying happy over the holidays. I try not to spend too much money and take some time out for myself during this stressful time of year.
These are all really wonderful tips on staying happy through the holidays. I liked how you talked about managing expectations. I think that is huge for the holiday season! Also, spending money on experiences not stuff! Great post!
I plan my holidays well in advance and almost six months in advance for our long summer holidays. The process itself makes me so happy which essentially boils down to planning for happiness. Setting expectations as you rightly mentioned is so very important.
This was very good and actually got me looking forward to the holidays with joy. I like all the focus on giving things like time and simple things and I really like the idea of baking. I really hate to cook but you actually made it sound nice and cozy to think of baking treats with my kids and just spending time with them. Thanks!
while the holidays can come with hectic stress, I actually do enjoy them every year for the most part! I love decorating and spending time with my family 🙂
Ain’t these the simplest ways of living a happy life? Loved that you shared it. More and more poeple need to know about them!
Holidays are some of the happiest and fondest childhood memories I have. It’s so important to stay healthy both physically and mentally during such a hectic time of the year.
This is how I proceed during the holidays because if I don’t, I wind up sad and angry. Family traditions are dead in my family due to b.s. issues that won’t resolve, so now my husband and I do the holidays our way!
Holidays are supposed to be about family gatherings but I can see how it can be depressing. Not all people have a healthy happy family to go mingle with.