Description

The holidays are here—office parties, family gatherings, Christmas markets, and endless to-dos. But what if I told you it’s okay to say no?

In this candid episode of The Pulse, I open up about the overwhelming pressure of the holiday season and why setting boundaries isn’t just necessary—it’s an act of self-care. From juggling work events to family visits and personal traditions, I share my personal rule: no more than two events per week—one work-related, one private. I dive into the guilt of turning down invites, the art of prioritizing your well-being, and why it’s perfectly fine to cancel plans or take a breather.

Whether you’re traveling to see loved ones or navigating local festivities, this episode is a gentle reminder that you don’t have to do it all. Tune in for practical tips on managing holiday stress, embracing imperfection, and giving yourself permission to slow down.

Podmas Day 2: Because sometimes, the best gift you can give is time—for yourself.

Thank you for being a part of "The Pulse" community. Together, let's continue to thrive, support one another, and live our best lives, both in and out of the workplace. Stay tuned for more episodes that inspire, inform, and empower you to live with heart and resilience.

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My Website: www.juliehalbert.com

Disclaimer:

The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are solely those of the host and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of any entities represented or any other individuals associated with the podcast. The content provided is based on personal experiences and perspectives and is intended for informational and inspirational purposes only. Listeners are encouraged to form their own opinions and seek professional advice tailored to their specific circumstances.

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Transcription

• Speaker #0

  Hi, welcome to The Pulse. I hope you're doing well. My name is Julie, I'm your host, and today is actually the second episode of Podmas, and you may see on social media, but I had clearly to redo these episodes. I did prepare for Podmas to kind of pre-record a few episodes, which I did on Saturday, and now we are Monday night, and the second episode didn't feel right in terms of how I talk about the subject so I decided to pre-record it. So we are Monday night while you are listening. It's not going to be a major problem so that's why I thought best to record it again. So today in this episode what I would like to talk about is this time of year and the fact that it's actually not an easy time for people to manage. We are very often for many companies closing the year end. There is a lot of office parties happening to celebrate the end of the year or due to some events depending on the country. So we have Christmas party and else. And on top of it, you also have very often your own family parties, get togethers. I live in Germany. We have Christmas markets and it's kind of the nicest to nice thing to go enjoy and check it out and go have a. a glass of Glühwein or whatever else, or hang out with your friends. So there is a lot of expectation towards the end of the year. And I will say I'm a bit of an hypocrite because in a way I added Podmas on top of my to-do. So it was important for me to talk about all those events and about how to best handle it. And everyone will do it differently. but my thought was really to share how this year I've decided to... put some boundaries because basically already starting mid-November I had I started to get all the invites I started to put my schedule together and my first team event for for work was already last was it last week yeah in November so last week of November and I know I will have quite some event with different so you have the departments the bigger team the project team etc so a lot is expected and on top of it i also have as mentioned christmas market and spending time with friends you have the time of year i mean for me at least at some point i will have christmas with my family i will also go back to france see my my brothers see my nieces my nephews and everyone around me and it's definitely very very intense and I don't think it's more intense for me that I am traveling. It can also be intense where your family is nearby because there is potentially also a lot expected on a day-to-day. So what I want to share with you today is that it's okay to say no to some things. And I know it's hard because you want to please everybody, you want to like enjoy this time of the year, so you want to go to that Christmas market that you like to go to or You want to ensure you have the best gift for your friend or for your family, Secret Santa, etc., all the things that come along. But at some point, you have to take care of yourself. So for me, I've put one rule this year when it comes to events, is I've said to myself no more than two events per week. One work-related and one private-related. So for example, we're December 1st. Tomorrow I have an event, so I will go to this one, but I had another event planned on Wednesday. And I said to myself, well, I would love to, I like this team, I like this group of people, and I would love to spend, to go to the Christmas market with them. It just feels too much. So I'd rather say no for my own personal mental health, for my own personal well-being, also physical health. And that would be the way. And it's okay to say no, because I feel like a lot of people feel the pressure when I talk to some of my colleagues or some of my friends that you have to go to the company events. You have to go to your friend's event and you have to be present. And I try to be fair. So on the other side, I will also not automatically accept every friend's event. So I've also given some thoughts. So I will be going away for a couple of days. but During that time, I'm not going to overwhelm myself. I'm going to spend some time also just chilling and not rushing through. And I will ensure that I take the time for me during those days as well. And same thing the following week, I have another event at work and have another event private. But again, I said only one of each. And that gives me a bit of my rule of thumb to say if I have two evening books, for people, then they give me five for myself. And I'm lucky enough, I don't have a family nearby, or I have my dog. So it's quite manageable also for me to take care of the gift, to take care of everything else on the side to prepare the food or whatever else is needs to be done. Or in this case, also this podcast. But I just wanted to share that a bit of insight with you, maybe that resonate, maybe that help you feel um slightly better i'm sorry i'm laughing a bit because my dog is of course playing now so you may hear some sound in the background of him playing but while he can be super quiet he also has those energy moments so we'll go out in a little bit i think this is really it right before i go deeper into the future episodes when it's going to be more about growth about development about what i learned about my favorite books etc all those episodes i just wanted to mention that it's okay to say no it's okay to change your mind it's okay to cancel an event to cancel something that you expected to do it's also okay to do some gift later if you don't see the person right away and it's also okay to take a break and take that extra half hour where you just sit on the couch and do nothing even though potentially your to-do list is very long and waiting but this I'll talk in another episode as well, more toward the end of PODMAS, because I think this is also an important topic. So anyway, I'll cut myself shorter because I have to edit this because I have no time to move on. I wish you a very nice day and I talk to you soon. Bye.