Holiday Lifehacks: 5 Things to do to make Life Easier during the holidays

With just a little over 9 days left before Christmas and a few more days before New Year, this is one of the busiest seasons of all considering how Filipinos celebrate Christmas. This is usually the time when traffic jams are at an all time high, gatherings and parties are almost daily and gifts come from all angles filling up the table with food and the Christmas tree with gifts!

But with all that comes some challenges. Here are some tips to make life easier during this holiday season.

1) Shop during the weekdays
Shopping on weekends can be very stressful during the Christmas season because more often than not, it's like the whole stretch of EDSA is trying to fit in one tiny puny parking lot. Not only will you be squeezing in yourself with the crowd, you might encounter 'out of stocks' and 'broken size' of leftover items. Of course, if you shop the earlier the better and if you have the opportunity to shop during the weekdays, even better. If you're really busy and your family and friends will understand if you give them late gifts, shopping after Christmas can also give you huge savings and empty malls! :)

Can't shop and just want to inform someone that you remember them? Check out these personalized Christmas cards from WeChat! These holiday cards will be available starting December 18, 2013. To claim, find 'WeChat team' in your WeChat contacts list and send them your holiday photo or voice message. In return, 4 Christmas greeting card templates with your photo or voice recording will be sent to you. You can send these out to family and friends via WeChat Moments or share them via Facebook. This is a great alternative than just sending the usual 'Merry Christmas' SMS!

2) Deliver gifts on a Sunday
I know that it might not be applicable to all but whenever possible, deliver gifts on a Sunday. Give your inaanaks (Godsons) and whomever you want to give a gift during the least traffic day of the week. Except of course if the one you are giving the gift to is living near a mall.

3) Plan wisely by using technology
Planning a Christmas party or a gathering can be time consuming if not done in a systematic way. An easier way is by using the group messaging feature of WeChat. Why? WeChat can let you send voice, text or video in one chat window for up to 40 friends! Not only is everything documented, you can also easily inform your friends of a specific location by sending a map! Easier than having to send SMS for reminders, e-mail for the map, phone calls for updates etc! Do it all in one window.

4) Avoid network jam for calls and SMS
Remember before when networks tend to get jammed before the clock strikes 12 on the 24th or 31st? Well, If you use messaging apps like WeChat, it won't get jammed because you'll be using internet connection to send the message. Also, phone calls abroad will be easier and cheaper!

5) What to do with tons of food gifts
If you are one of the person that gets A LOT of food gifts during Christmas, consider yourself lucky. A lot of people have nothing to eat. Rather than wait for it to spoil, why don't you head out and find someone that might be very happy to eat what you have. Don't even wait for a few days after Christmas. Share. It's the essence of Christmas. Not only will you not waste food, you'll also get a warm fuzzy feeling of having helped others.

Christmas is a 2-week vacation for most of us and a month's worth of celebration for some. But the feeling of having done good to others will remain with you and the one who received for a lifetime.

Bonus Tip:
Take advantage of WeChat's backup feature. Take photos and upload it via Moments. Their servers are backed-up so you are assured that your precious holiday moments will be saved from data corruption.

*WeChat also comes with comprehensive privacy setting functions, which enables user to tailor their security level as needed

Do you have your own tip? Share them in the comments section.

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Facebook Page: www.facebook.com/WeChatPH
Twitter: @WeChatPH

Cheftonio
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