SURVEY FINDS 2003 WINTER HOLIDAY TO BE MORE STRESSFUL THAN IRAQ, JOBS, & BIRTHDAYS
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Added: 12/17/2003
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SURVEY FINDS 2003 WINTER HOLIDAY TO BE MORE STRESSFUL THAN IRAQ, JOBS, & BIRTHDAYS
A survey conducted for the Gail Kasper Consulting Group, a leading sales training and coaching company, found that the 2003 winter holidays will create an extraordinarily high-level of stress for Americans. The survey found that the ‘Holiday’ month, consisting of Thanksgiving to New Years, will create more stress in the lives of Americans than the situation in Iraq, their jobs, and birthdays. Specifically respondents indicated that money and time management were the major causes of holiday stress with both categories ranking in the ‘very’ to ‘extremely stressful’ range.
The survey, which was completed by a random group of 125 adult Internet users, asked respondents to rate the level of stress created by 10 events. The events, which ranged from birthdays to 9/11, were ranked from 1 - 10 with 1 equaling ‘Not at all stressful’, 4 equaling “Somewhat stressful”, 7 equaling “Very stressful”, and 10 equaling “Extremely stressful’.
After averaging the responses the top-3 most stressful events were:
· “Company layoffs” scoring 7.3.
· “9/11” scoring 6.6
· “2003 winter holiday” scoring 6.15
Falling under the top 3 were: “Iraq/ Middle East situation”, “Your Job”, “Holiday Gift Shopping”, “Visiting Family During the Holidays”, “Visiting the Dentist”, “Anniversary”, “Birthday.”
The survey also asked participants to compare holiday traditions with everyday activities. Of those scenarios:
· 53% prefer shopping for groceries than gifts
· 16% would rather visit the dentist than their family
· 35% would rather surf the Internet than attend a work-related holiday party
· 28% would prefer watching Trading Spaces to putting up decorations
· 37% prefer going to bed early on New Years
“With the holidays upon us, it is important that we don’t ignore the two things that cause the most stress: time management and money,” said Gail Kasper, President, Gail Kasper, LLC. Kasper suggests there are 7 simple steps to eliminating holiday stress.
1) Pre-plan. “If you really want to eliminate holiday stress get out a pad and paper and do 20 minutes of pre-planning. Ultimately, this will lower your stress level and make the holidays more enjoyable.”
2) Set and record holiday goals. “Decide exactly what you want to get out of the holidays. In other words, when the holidays are over, how is it you want to feel and what is it you would like to have accomplished? Would you like to have more fun with your family? Are you hoping for more time with your kids? Would you like to feel in control of your spending?”
3) Identify specific tasks. “Make your list and check it twice – shopping, decorating, baking, parties, dinners, special cards. Once you have your list ask for help on items that seem overbearing or too difficult. Whether its family bringing a holiday dish or friends coming over to help decorate, make the holiday season what it is really all about – people.”
4) Block time. “Blocking time means opening up your planner or calendar and indicating a specific date and time to accomplish particular tasks. Blocking means nothing interferes with the specific times you have scheduled. You take no phone calls, no interruptions, you do the task for the entire time you have blocked in your schedule.”
5) Set and stick to a budget. “There are no exceptions to this rule. Maybe this is a good time to remind yourself that your friends and family love you for who you are not the size of your wallet. The alternative, which is to pretend everything is fine and use your credit card, will only cause more stress and make the problem worse."
6) Don’t procrastinate. “Start blocking your time now. If procrastination persists call a friend or family member and set a time to start planning together. When you team up, you not only get the job done, but you have fun in the process.”
7) Don’t let anger or frustration consume you. “Face it, you may see people you don’t want to see during the holidays but the loss of sleep, tension headaches, and nausea, might turn a 6-hour party into a 6-week nightmare. As soon as negative thoughts creep into your brain take a minute and make a list of all of the positive aspects of the holidays. Your life is too valuable to be consumed by feelings of anger and frustration.
"The results of the survey suggest that the holidays provide additional stress to some people for two basic reasons," said Janet Lowitz, MSW, LSW of the Mt. Laurel, NJ Center for the Family. "The first is the pressure to be sociable and interactive which can be very uncomfortable for some individuals. Holiday parties, office parties and home entertaining apply more pressure than usual to be with others in social settings. Second, is the pressure to perform. The holidays increase the pressure to cook, decorate, entertain and give gifts. In both categories, there is increased pressure to perform well in environments where we may be drawn out of our comfort zone." |
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