Around this time of year, it’s easy to get lost in a whirlwind of activities, such as shopping, year-end work projects, social-gatherings, family projects and more shopping. Even the most skilled of multi-taskers are put to the test, and more often than not, procrastination begins to take hold.

But never fear, there are ways to make it through. There are secret methods and tricks that the world’s most successful, productive people use to power through their day and get more done in one hour than most of us do all day.

Let me be the first to say I’m going to do my best to follow these productivity “hacks” as best I can, as I do find myself lacking in that department on occasion. I hope you enjoy, and more importantly, I hope maybe some of these gems will actually help you have a stress-free, super productive holiday week.

Five Ways to Get More Stuff Done

1. During your morning shower, consolidate as many bathroom activities as possible. Yes, this means you can wash, shave, brush teeth, floss and whatever else is part of your routine in that department. Mount a small mirror with suction-cups in there. The shower is basically a big sink, so use it. Also, get some stretches in and even a little meditation while you’re in there to help charge up your body for the day.

2. Have a family? Then learn to delegate. If you have a house full of potential workers, then put them to work. You’d be surprised at what kind of time you can free up for bigger projects if you have other people (worker drones) doing your dirty work.

3. Do the boring and undesirable first. We all have things that have to be done during the day that we absolutely dread. Some of these things can be put off, while others can’t. So if you have must-do tasks that make you say “ugh,” then muscle up and do them first. In other words, make your day top- heavy, and get the hard stuff done while you have the most energy. Save the rest of the day for lighter tasks for a smooth transition into the evening hours.

4. Social media down-time is critical. There are new studies every day that suggest alarming trends about how much of our time is being dedicated and even wasted in social media land, with the biggest culprit being Facebook. While social media can be a powerful communication tool, it can also be a unbelievably massive time-killer. When you’re getting stuff done, leave the tablets off and the smartphones down. Be tough about it, too.

5. Just say no. Perhaps the most important thing to learn here, with the most potential benefit, is learning how and when to say no to others. If you’re a people-pleaser, which many of us are, it is of the utmost importance that you learn to start saying “no.” If you don’t, you will never get anything accomplished. Sound familiar? Helping other people is awesome, but not all the time, especially when it means causing enough stress to derail your own tasks. Just remember, it’s completely okay to say no!

This will be my last column before 2014, so I wish all of you an extremely wonderful Christmas break and a safe and happy New Year!