Self-Management Skills Required this Holiday
Like our nation, many of our families are divided.
This election was a BIGGIE! Whichever side you are on, chances are self-management skills will be required this Holiday season!
What is meant to be a time of joy, kindness, generosity and togetherness can be tinged with dread. We dread the division of our families and our country. We dread witnessing the jabs between our favorite aunt, who is waving a Trump flag, and our favorite cousin, who has spent his life in social service and is vehemently against Trump.
Like our nation, many of our families are divided
And like the country, our families are not always communicating with each other in the way that we would hope.
We love BOTH our aunt and our cousin. Our children, sitting at the small folding table next to the adult table, are watching us. We are their models. Self-management skills will be required this Holiday season and they can do better if we do better. Moreover, children have a way of loving everyone for who they are – even in a big burly sweater.
Self-Management Skills are Required this Holiday Season
What if we could be proud of our self-management? What if we step into someone else’s shoes and try to remember who these people are and what they have meant to us? What if we pause before we speak?
Self-management requires self-regulation, self-reflection, perspective taking and/or stepping into someone else’s shoes. Use our understanding of the other person’s past and intentions, we can project their possible reactions. Our self-awareness will help us react in measured and respectable ways.We need strategies on how to offer – and accept – compassion, kindness and perspective.
5 Strategies for Improved Self-Management Skills This Holiday Season:
1.Remember Intention– Assume and remember the best intentions of those around you. What has each one done for you? This is especially important for the relatives on the other side of the aisle. For those relatives with whom you don’t share the same views, make an extra effort to listen to them. Validate their feelings and emotions. You can say, “Interesting. I can see why you would feel that way.” As you express your opinions, remember to focus on the kindness, compassion and respect your relative has shown you for years, her acts of love and affection. What you say can damage your relationship.
2.Walk in their Shoes– What could be going on in the his life? Has this year been particularly tough financially? Could COVID have hit her family harder than yours? Don’t assume motives. Ask Open Ended questions and truly listen to the response without judgement.
3.Build a Bridge to Understanding –If your intention is to speak to your family with respect, ditch the one-liners, zingers and sarcasm. Breathe deeply, pause and respond in a way that convey respect. Keep your tone neutral and avoid words like “always” and “never”.
4.Listen- Listening isn’t just not talking. It involves eye contact, and connection. Keep facial expressions and body language relaxed and friendly. Don’t interrupt or “one-up” either.
5.Manage Emotions Rather Than Having Them Manage You– Now, before the holidays arrive, make a mental or written note of the symptoms your body expresses when it becomes agitated. Come up with ways to lessen these reactions so you don’t overheat and blow your top or say something you wish you didn’t. Use mindfulness to manage your emotions by recognizing the signs and breathing consciously to slow your mind and thoughts.
6.Don’t climb onto the soapbox – It is highly unlikely that you will influence or change anyone’s deep-seated beliefs over pumpkin pie. Keep away from the lectures and ask for another slice of pie instead.
7.Find the similarities– Humans share lots in common as a species. Emphasize commonality and stay away from shaming or declarations of incompatibility.
This holiday season, instead of banning certain topics, institute rules of respect. Insist on giving each member equal time, refrain from interruptions and allow a retort.
In my practice, one of the things I do is teach kids how to listen to one another, to show respect to their peers, and to practice the skills of empathy in order to form a connect. Now more than ever, we need to be reminded of those skills, and practice them with gusto.
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