It’s the most wonderful… and busy, stressful time of the year! Family get-togethers, school functions, parties – oh yeah, and that thing called work. While flexibility is one of the best perks of WFH, it can make mastering your work/life balance a bit more difficult to achieve during the holidays.

Here are seven tips for WFH during the holidays, so you can leave work (at home) and enjoy this special time with family and friends!

  1. Get your shopping done early

Yes, every year you vow to have all shopping done before December and yet somehow find yourself adding expediting shipping costs to your budget. This year, set a deadline for holiday shopping, so when you’re juggling last-minute party invites and the demands of your job, you can rest easy knowing that you have one less thing on the to-do list! 

  1. Put it all on the cal

Putting both personal and work events on one calendar right when an invitation comes across your desk is the best way to keep your schedule organized and your brilliant brain free of unnecessary clutter. 

  1. Give yourself the gift of a zen WFH space

Breathe in, breathe out. Creating a calm and focused work environment can not only help lower stress levels but also save you time! The more efficient you are with your WFH time, the more quality, focused time you can have with family and friends! Isn’t that what the holidays are all about? 

  1. Take breaks to do a mind/body check-in

The holidays are a wonderful time of the year, but they’re also a stressful time where your routine is upended and you’re spread thin. Even though you may feel like you don’t have a minute to spare, checking in on your mental and physical health is even more important during this season. Schedule a 15-minute break every day to do a check-in. Some meditation? Yoga? A snack that gives your body what it needs? Use this time to do what you need to recharge. Your family and friends (and most importantly, you!) will thank you later.

  1. Make daily and weekly to-do lists

Is this a helpful part of a regular daily routine? Yep, we’d say so. However, creating a prioritized to-do list is extra important during the holiday season. Simply because there are just more to-dos! Every Sunday, plan out your week and write a list of everything that must get done. Then break that list up into days and schedule it out by the hour. It might feel silly to schedule “shopping for Mom from 5-6 PM Tuesday”, but it beats having five different shopping tabs open on your browser for a week, right next to your work email.

  1. Communication is key – let your team know when you’re OOO

The holidays are a busy time for everyone and there’s no shame in taking some time with family and friends without checking in on Slack every five minutes. In fact, it’s far better if you take the time to recharge (if you can call it that during the holidays). Just make sure you communicate with your team when you are unavailable, so you can confidently unplug!

  1. Give your team the gift of Surprise and yourself an extra $1,000 for the holidays!

‘Tis the season for shameless promos! But hey, some extra money around the holidays is always helpful! Right now when you invite your manager to use Surprise for work, you get $1,000 cash once your team is activated! Get started now!

Allie Demopoulos is a Content Copywriter at Surprise.com. A writer and producer, she believes that humor is the greatest tool and that the best of anything–comedy, music, stories–are experienced in basements. When she’s not creating, you can find her in the electric streets of Manhattan, a place she feels lucky to call home.