“How do we get the letters to Santa?”

Dear Santa,

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I am not sure I truly knew the joy and excitement the Holiday season can bring until my oldest son developed his obsession with Santa. He will ask every day if he can write his letter to Santa and will insist the rest of the family write them too.

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This year we stumbled upon the adorable Netflix move Klaus…this was amazing. The story of how letters to Santa started. To give Netflix a little plug, this movie is AMAZING…we laughed we cried and it was something the whole family enjoyed. (If you have not watched it, I highly recommend it)

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So, with all of this talk about letters to Santa the conversation came up, “How do we get the letters to Santa?” Well as a logistics professional, I simply told him a dry van truck picks them all up and takes them to the North Pole. He looked at me like I had two heads and said again “How do we get the letters to Santa?” I giggled and more simply put a truck takes them to him.

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After I thought about that statement a little, I realized there is nothing simple about it. This time of year is crazy for EVERYBODY and most of us are going in a million different directions. That is no different in the trucking industry. With end of year inventory and trying to get out those last-minute shipments it is easy to understand how the burnout can happen.Trying to take one more shipment to get that gift your loved one has been wanting and stressing about how you are going to get it all done really can take the joy out of the season. To top it off, many drivers and other professions do not even get time off over the holidays to spend with their friends and family.

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With all of the craziness here are a few tips that are targeted to drivers, but can be applied to everybody this Holiday season.

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*Do not overdo it – Work life balance is something that is not easy any time of year in some industries, but figuring out how to juggle it all is an art. Keep your A list and your B list of things to do and if it does not fall into one of those buckets do not stress to get it done.

*Ask for help – It is ok to say “No”, the holiday season is a time to take care of your mental and physical health to avoid starting the New Year burnt out.

*Stay in touch – If you are not able to be with friends and loved ones over the holidays make sure you are still in contact with them.

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While all of these things are easier said than done, they are things to keep in the back of your mind. This time of year it is amazing what a smile to a stranger or giving something small to somebody that would otherwise not receive anything can do. Let’s make a goal to be patient with each other and remember the feeling the Holidays brought when we were children.

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