If your typical festive season feels more exhausting than exciting, it may be time to change tack. Don't get swept up trying to outdo yourself in the swell of good cheer around the end of the year. You might spend far too much time on questions like who gets what gift or whose turn it is to host crabby great-aunt Lucy and her hyper-excitable pooch.

Simplifying your approach can help you enjoy the season more and make looking like the perfect host or hostess easy. Remember, it's a time for families, meaning everyone should share the good and the challenging moments.

Pick Out Priorities

Talk with your partner and family about holiday expectations ahead of time. Wanting to do everything perfectly is unattainable. Instead, identify a few meaningful traditions that bring you and your family the most joy during the holidays. Pick the top few things you want to do and prioritize them.

Write down everything you need to do, buy, and prepare. Give yourself more time to get everything done by revamping your calendar. It's perfectly acceptable to decline holiday invitations or activities that don't align with your schedule or to-do lists. Reschedule all non-essential appointments until January.

Nail Those Activity Lists

Create various lists of activities for adults, children, and families before your guests are due to arrive. This way, you can quickly refer to the list when boredom sets in. 

Budget for More Than the Present

Sticking to a budget is a wise way to stop you from getting carried away in the heat of the moment. 

• Establish a price limit in advance for gifts.

• Last-minute shoppers often overspend. Plan your shopping in advance by choosing specific times to complete your purchases. 

• Online shopping can take a lot of stress out of choosing gifts. Just be mindful of increased delivery lead times as we get closer to the end of the year. 

• Consider buying digital subscriptions rather than physical goods as gifts.

Online Shopping Safety Tips

Always encrypt your internet connection before logging into your bank or other accounts. Encryption is one of the benefits of a VPN. A virtual private network (VPN) protects your login credentials and credit card information from hackers. It protects your IP address and guards your privacy from those relentless advertising trackers on every website.

Stick to your trusted shopping platforms. Be cautious of all those fake websites and social media ads that appear this time of year. Scammers often create attractive websites where "everything is on sale" to trick you into clicking on dangerous links. You may not receive your goods, and your credit card information could be compromised if you land on a spoofed website.  

Think About Your Digital Home Safety

During this time of year, there will be a lot of casual coming and going around your home. Many people will want access to your Wi-Fi network. Prepare your network by securing your router against malware. Implement a VPN to protect your vulnerable smart home devices against playful teenage hacker geniuses. 

One effective strategy is to create a guest network to isolate guest traffic from your own. Guests may not be aware that their devices could be infected, and by limiting their access to your main home network, you can help protect your own devices from the spread of malware.

Make the Preparation a Part of Family Activities

Keep the kids busy creating handcrafted cards, wrapping presents, baking seasonal treats, or decorating the house to get into the festive spirit. Help your lively teenagers get rid of extra energy. "Volunteer" them for a few hours of community service, for example, a walkway patrol shoveling snow for elderly neighbors. 

Navigate Complicated Relationships

You may feel obliged to invite family who have less-than-wonderful relationships with everyone else. Make it less stressful by preparing for difficult conversations. It's perfectly fine to set your boundaries. You can tell someone you don't want to discuss a particular topic or change the subject. For example, suggest an activity to redirect the conversation if you wish to end an unwanted discussion.

There's Always Next Year

If things go wrong despite all your planning, remember that the goal is to create joyful and meaningful memories with your loved ones. Focus on the moments that bring you happiness and remind yourself that it's okay to take a step back when needed. Holiday seasons are never an unmitigated disaster - there are always a few moments to be treasured. If something doesn't go as planned, treat the lessons you've learned as just one of the gifts you received, and remember them next year. Happy holidays!