Do You Need to Tame Your Inner Scrooge?

Ebenezer Scrooge
in “A Christmas Carol” wasn’t a likeable character, in the beginning of the story.

As a child, I remember reading the well-loved classic by Charles Dickens many times. It was and still is a favorite of mine.

Through a series of events, changes and big projects this fall, I was behind in getting my Christmas shopping done. As I plowed through the crowds that were pushing and shoving, right before this up and coming Christmas, I felt my inner Scrooge starting to rise up from the depths.

“Bah, humbug” was the expression that Ebenezer Scrooge used and I felt myself thinking it. There was still food to make, gifts to get, presents to wrap…and the time was quickly slipping by. So what did I do to let go of this mindset?

Give Your Inner Scrooge the Boot

• Let go of any idea of a “perfect” Christmas. It doesn’t exist. Really.
• Do your best and be okay with that.
• Take a deep breath and then another.
• Take a bath.
• Be grateful for what you have…when you count your blessings and focus on that, then that “Bah, humbug” feeling goes away.
• Sort your priorities, do what’s most important first (like family time…relaxed family time) and let the rest go.
• Step out of the frenzy of shopping, baking, and parties. Pare down and cut back. You will thank yourself and maybe, your wallet will thank you too. In our family, we gave up buying presents for everyone…we draw names. Not only is this a budget saver, it’s a time saver, too…and we really need to value our time, don’t we?
• Ask yourself “What is really important to me about Christmas?” Is it the gifts, the food, or the relationships that you have with friends, family, loved ones? Is there a deeper, spiritual meaning for you?

So, I told my inner Scrooge to settle down…to look at what was important…to let go of what wasn’t…and to enjoy what was really important to me…

Scrooge in “A Christmas Carol” realized that what was most important to him was his family and the relationships that he had with them and his employee Bob Cratchit and his family. Don’t sacrifice the relationships you have for an “ideal” picture of Christmas…or any other holiday, for that matter.

Embrace the Moment

Embrace the moment, enjoy your loved ones and the time that you have with them. Life brings changes and even though we can accept 100% responsibility for our lives, there are aspects that are beyond our control. So enjoy the now.

Scrooge learned that he couldn’t change the past…and the future is yet unwritten…we only have now…to make those changes…don’t we?

I wish you all the best in this holiday season, no matter what you celebrate…

And in the words of the lovely Tiny Tim “God bless us….every one!”

“Drive your own life…you deserve to, don’t you?”  Sherie Venner

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Sherie

I am a Relationship Coach who helps others create happy, healthy, loving relationships…including the relationship they have with themselves…by breaking through those blocks and barriers to success. I use various techniques gathered through training as a Master Practitioner of NLP, timeline, hypnosis and common sense gathered through life experience.

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