Show Transcript

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With roughly one week to go until Christmas, today's episode is your permission

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slip to ditch the idea of the perfect Christmas.

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Instead, you are going to be embracing the perfectly imperfect.

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Trust me, my friend, this is going to make Christmas way more fun and way less stressful.

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I welcome you to episode 350.

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Yo, are you ready to flip the script on life? Because those bad days,

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they're just doors to better days.

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And that's exactly what we do here at Grit, Grace, and Inspiration.

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Your host, Kevin Lowe. He's been flipping the script on his own life,

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turning over 20 years of being completely blind into straight-up inspiration,

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motivation, and encouragement just for you.

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So, kick back, relax, and let me introduce you to your host, Kevin Lowe.

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All right, let's paint a picture for you. It's Christmas Eve.

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You're running around like a chicken with its head cut off.

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The turkey, it's way too done.

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And oh my gosh, is the smoke coming from the oven? The cookies, who forgot the cookies?

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Does this sound familiar?

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The thing is, my friend, we've all been sold this idea of the perfect holiday.

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We see it on TV, the Hallmark Channel.

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But the truth is, is that that is for the movies, for the TV.

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The truth is, is that's not reality. And so you do not have to think that your

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Christmas has to live up to those expectations.

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And so that is why today I start a two-part series preparing you for Christmas.

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It's the week before, and I'm going to give you a boost, a mindset shift,

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to change up how you have been doing Christmas.

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Because I want you to enjoy the holiday. I don't want you to be stressed and

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overwhelmed, disappointed, and upset because it all goes up in flames.

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No, my friend, that's all just part of the experience.

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Let's start today with a quick reality check. Think back to your favorite Christmas.

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What is the memory you think of the most?

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Now, was that perfect?

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Probably not. You probably remember it because things went totally haywire.

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Things went totally wrong. But you know what I always say? The worst moments,

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they always make for the best memories.

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And I'm not saying that I want things to go wrong. No, I just want to be sure

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that you are set up for success this holiday season because we are aiming for

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connection, not perfection.

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I'm talking about forgetting about Instagram worthy photos.

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Instead, focusing on belly laughing, love filled moments, times with the family

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where you're not all dressed up to look good in the pictures.

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No, you're just dressed up to enjoy the Christmas season.

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And so in order for us to do this, we might as well start with a challenge, your first challenge.

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And that is for you to let go of one thing that you want to be perfect this year.

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Maybe it's decorating the house. You want it all to be perfect.

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You want the lights outside to be beautiful.

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You want the tree to be perfectly decorated. I want you to choose at least one

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of those things and let it go.

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Forget about it. Stop stressing over it. It doesn't matter.

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And so my friend, just let it go. Tell yourself it doesn't matter.

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I can let it go. And I want you to be able to feel the freedom that comes with that.

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When we let go of the things that truly don't matter, we give ourselves an opportunity

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to truly enjoy Christmas.

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So how do you be sure that you truly enjoy the Christmas season?

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Well, first and foremost, you let go of the things that do not matter.

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Second of all, you lower expectations. Because when we expect less, we enjoy more.

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When we set the bar so low, well, then it doesn't take much to exceed expectations.

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This, my friend, is the mindset shift that can change life.

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You set your expectations low, and that way, whatever happens,

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it's either going to meet your expectations or hopefully exceed expectations.

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And then, of course, it goes back to what really matters.

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Is it having the most amazingly decorated table, the tablescape,

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something that would make Martha Stewart proud?

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Or is it instead having conversations around the table?

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Is it somebody spilling a glass of wine on the white tablecloth and you getting upset?

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No way. You know that it can be cleaned. It can be thrown away.

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It's all about having fun this Christmas.

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Life is stressful enough. The holidays should not be part of that stress.

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And I would also encourage you, if you're focusing on being sure that the gifts

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you're buying are wrapped perfectly, the bow is tied tight.

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The wrapping paper has those tough little corners that are so impossible to do.

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You have them looking so magnificent. You rewrap it two, three times just to

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get it perfect. My friend, nobody cares.

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The only person who cares about that is you. So let it go. If you really want

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to embrace this, I encourage you, start a new tradition that celebrates the perfectly imperfect.

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Maybe it's an ugly sweater contest. Maybe you give a prize to the person who

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wrapped their present the worst.

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Or maybe it's a gift exchange, but instead you surprise everybody.

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And the person who gave the worst gift possible, they win a prize.

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Think about things to flip the script on this Christmas.

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Making things easier on you. Making things a whole lot more fun.

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We got to take the stress away from the holidays.

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Because I feel like if we're stressed about the holidays, then that just kind of ruins it.

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We lose the meaning behind Christmas.

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So my friend, I remind you, your holidays, they don't need to look like anybody else's.

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They just have to be right for you. So if that even means that you don't cook

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a big dinner, instead, you order take out Chinese food.

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Whatever it is for you that makes things a little bit easier for you,

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I encourage you to do them.

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Because, my friend, I promise you, at the end of the day, people aren't going

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to look back and remember that perfectly golden brown turkey or that gravy that

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was, oh, just perfectly salted.

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No, nobody's going to remember that at all.

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Instead, they're going to remember the memories made with the people there.

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I encourage you to be sure that this Christmas season, you laugh a little more.

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You tell a few more jokes.

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You give yourself an opportunity to just be with the people you love.

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So I encourage you to be present. If you have family from out of town,

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don't worry about slaving away in the kitchen, preparing amazing meals.

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Instead, be with them. It's time spent with the people we love that matters the most in this life.

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So my friend, I end today's short little episode with one final reminder of

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embracing the perfectly imperfect.

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When the tree falls over, when the turkey is burnt, when the cookies are crispy

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and your Aunt Sally's fruitcake was horrible, just realize it's perfectly imperfect.

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It's exactly how it was meant to be.

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So I encourage you to enjoy every messy, screwed up, perfectly imperfect moment

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of this holiday season. And my friend, I can't wait to see you in 2025.

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Merry Christmas. And don't forget to check out Thursday's episode where I'm

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going to give you a second little dose of some help for this Christmas season.

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Until then, I'm Kevin Lowe. And this was Grace and Inspiration.

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I hope you have an amazing day. And I'll see you next time.

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Music.