OG Tuesday Issue #170

Start your morning with this affirmation:

Today’s checklist: Share love while saving money, tour Santa’s house, grow beyond holiday “comparisonitis,” and Feng-Shui your festive gatherings.

Maybe you and your family opted for a non-commercial holiday celebration this year. Maybe you want to show more people you care without breaking the bank. No matter what motivates you, these free and thoughtful gestures prove true generosity doesn’t require spending money.

Write them a letter complimenting their strengths, talents, and individuality. Bonus points if you use pretty stationary or try your hand at calligraphy.

Choose a book from your shelf with special meaning or significance. Write a heartfelt message inside the cover and pass it on. Ask them to do the same when they feel the time is right.

Offer to babysit their kids, do a grocery run, make them dinner, or do any other act of service that helps them feel restored (and also super loved).

Invite them on a walk or hike and spend the entire time listening intently to whatever is on their mind.

Create an abstract piece of art (painting, sketch, sculpture, or even string art) with them in mind. Give it to them and explain why the visuals capture their unique spirit.

Write them a comical poem. Most people will be thrilled that someone took the time and effort to write them anything, even if it’s not exactly Shakespeare.

During your daily travels, keep an eye out for found objects that remind you of the person. It could be an interesting rock, a fallen seed, or a piece of shiny paper you saw blowing across the road. Tell them why it made you think of them.

Encourage their passions and interests. For example, if your friend mentions their interest in trying plastic bag art during a casual conversation, send them links to resources or classes.

In a past survey, we asked you “What would improve your experience at work?”

A majority of you responded with this:

More purpose and meaning (a mission-driven job)

Finding meaning at work can be a journey, and the steps to get there will vary for each individual.

Luckily, this handy Career Goal Template can help you get your thoughts organized to figure out what drives you.

As you fill out your Career Goal template, do the following:

• Reflect on your values and strengths. Think about what drives you and what you’re good at. Consider your values and how they align with the work you’re doing.
• Identify what brings you joy. Think about the tasks and projects that you enjoy doing the most. What about them brings you joy? How can you incorporate more of these tasks into your work?
• Set goals: Set career goals that align with your values and interests. Having a clear sense of direction can help you feel more purposeful in your work.
• Seek feedback from others, such as mentors or colleagues, to gain insight into your strengths and areas for growth.
• Be open to new opportunities. This could mean seeking out new projects within your current organization or exploring new job opportunities.

Fill Out Your Career Goal Here

You might be done exchanging gifts by now, but that doesn’t mean the fun stops. Zillow is offering a tour of Santa’s House. Forecast: Festive warm fuzzies ahead.

Scrolling through the picturesque house can be a stand-alone activity, but you can also make it a scavenger hunt by finding the hidden items listed on the property’s landing page.

When you’re all done, think of one decorating idea you want to swap from Santa and incorporate it into your holiday decor vision for next year.

It’s a tale as old as time, a recurring theme in holiday movies through the decades: Putting too much pressure on creating the PERFECT HOLIDAY can result in stress, conflict, disappointment, and in some dramatic cases (Christmas Vacation), disaster.

You might find yourself thinking—while scrolling through the apparently picture-perfect moments captured on everyone else’s social feeds—you didn’t do enough, you didn’t do something right, you should have shelled out for a live-action Santa experience or show stopping exterior decor or ___________ [fill in this blank with anything and everything else coming to mind].

Take a deep breath, show yourself some kindness, and reflect on these healing words of wisdom.

Empower yourself by remembering a simple truth. You create your holiday expectations. You can also change them to better suit your life. Any feelings of “failure” you may experience come from your own mind and can be turned into points of pride with a little mental reframing. [Wisdom credit: Clinical Counselor Melissa Montgomery via Greentree Counseling Center, Inc.]

Remember to ask yourself, “Why am I doing this?” Pausing to reflect on this question stops you from sprinting down the chaotic treadmill of doing what everyone else is doing or doing what you think you’re supposed to be doing. This question reminds you what is important to you and you alone. [Wisdom credit: Family coach Catherine Pearlman, via Yahoo.]

Stop comparing, or more realistically, work toward not comparing yourself to others. Notice when you’re doing it, label the thought, and nudge your mind away from that pattern of thinking. Your holiday is your holiday. It will be different from everyone else’s, and that difference is a cause for celebration. Wishing you’d thought to do a certain activity or wondering if you should have spent more time and energy on some endeavor will only dampen your own much-deserved sense of satisfaction. [Wisdom credit: Clinical Counselor Melissa Montgomery via Greentree Counseling Center, Inc.]

If things get tense with holiday visitors, and you’re feeling less than patient, remember to empathize. You do not have to engage further with the disagreement or discussion. Put a pin in escalating conflict by reaffirming you understand where the other person is coming from, and with hope, moving on from there. Some key phrases to keep in your pocket are: I hear you. I understand. I get where you’re coming from. [Wisdom credit: Psychotherapist Erin Leonard via Psychology Today]

Be still for a moment. Things may be hectic. You’ve got places to go and people to see, but you’ll expand your capacity for joy and presence during those activities if you give yourself little breaks. Stop moving. Stop thinking. Focus on deep breathing until you feel more balanced. [Wisdom credit: Clinical psychologist via Huffington Post]

As you’re planning those post-holiday or New Year’s parties, dinners, and get-togethers, keep these easy Feng Shui tips on hand. They center on a few key mood-altering elements: Color, shape, smell, and texture.

Color: Choose decorations, dinnerware, and recipes within a color palette that aligns with the mood you hope to set. For example, shades of red shout energy and activity, purples may suggest abundance, and greens convey a sense of renewal.

Shape: How often do you think about the shapes surrounding you throughout daily life? Giving geometry some thought can help you create the right vibe for your event.

Here’s a Feng Shui shape association key:

Rectangle = Renewal
Triangle = Passion
Square = Stability
Circle = Clarity
Hexagon = Longevity
Octagon = Luck

Smell: Reflect on how certain fragrances make you feel, and your olfactory intuition will usually lead you in the right direction. Some general fragrance pointers include:

Texture: Vary the textures included in your decor. Some experts rely on nature to ensure they’re organically incorporating multiple textures. Bring in natural branches, different types of rocks, fresh greenery, pine cones, and anything else you’re lucky enough to find.

📄 Template: The end of the year is a great time to revisit your goals — both professional and personal. Consider downloading this free Self Evaluation Template to help identify your accomplishments and opportunities for improvement.

📊 Report: CareerBuilder’s Hiring Managers: State of Hiring and Retention Report is the holy grail for anyone involved in hiring and retention at work. Key topics include the current state of hiring, how offer packages are changing, 2023 retention trends, and the future of work environments.

🛠️ Tool: Notion released some awesome AI features, and you can try it for free. Think: telling it to create a table for your data, asking it what the team is currently working (centralized data), and more.

🔮 Manifest: 2024 is almost here — manifest your best year yet with this Vision Board Kit. We love how this board is simple, aesthetically pleasing, and fits on a bookshelf or desk so you can see it daily.

❗If you have a job opening at your company that you’d like us to share in our newsletter, please submit it here.