Christmas – the most wonderful time of the year is finally upon us. It’s the chance to abandon the chaos of our everyday routine and instead revel in the comfort and joy of precious family time.

From decking out our homes in festive lights and cheer to staying up late to leave Santa some homemade cookies and milk – what makes this time extra special is the way loved ones gather around to indulge in past traditions or craft entirely new ones.

Whichever way you are spending this magical time, it just wouldn’t be Christmas without delicious foods and customary treats like crumbly mince pies, moist fruit cakes and sumptuous roasts, all washed down with overly delectable desserts and warm, jovial tipples. (The new year resolutions are still quite some days away!)

Grace Stevens, award-winning TV chef, brilliant baker, and unapologetic Christmas lover shares some of her most cherished Christmas traditions, as well as a selection of her much-loved holiday recipes to help you celebrate the season with traditional trimmings, magic, and magnificence in abundance.

Grace’s top three ways to enjoy a memorable Christmas

1. Choose to bake not buy

One of the first signs that the Christmas season has arrived in our home is the smell of freshly baked treats. In fact, the minute I start baking with cinnamon and ginger, my family knows that it is Christmas time, as these smells are synonymous with the festive season.

I especially enjoy making home baked gifts like shortbread biscuits, tarts, or pretty tea cakes. Not only do they taste delicious, but they are made from the heart and show the recipient just how much they mean to you. Even better is the fact that you can get the whole family involved, especially young children if you are baking for teachers and grandparents.

2. Create personal traditions

Christmas time comes with a huge helping of nostalgia but over time this can begin to lose charm and perspective. Reinventing common Christmas traditions or putting your own spin on old favourites creates an intimate set of habits and rituals that are unique to your family, and which will bring a whole new meaning to the season.

Our family for example has dessert for breakfast on the 16 of December with steaming hot waffles and ice cream and lashings of runny chocolate spread. It’s our own little holiday tradition which we have done for years, and for us, fondly marks the start of the holidays.

3. Don’t overload the schedule

It’s easy to want to do as much as possible during these precious few days that you have together with loved ones, especially if they are coming from afar. However, a few things done fabulously is way better than lots of things that are rushed.

Take time to make meaningful memories and don’t clutter the days with lengthy to do lists that will cause nothing but stress. Simple things like baking and decorating a gingerbread house can be so much fun if done with all the family (but just try and forget about the mess). Music is also a great way to get everyone loose and into the festive vibe, as is spending an afternoon doing absolutely nothing but rewatching your favourite Christmas movies.  Remember it’s not what you do, but who you do it with that counts.

Grace’s top two indulgent Christmas recipes

1. Crème Brulee

This delicious and simple French dessert is so perfect for the festive season as you can prepare it way in advance, which means more time raising a toast with your favourite people. Simply pour it into individual ramekins and refrigerate, and then only pull out and blowtorch the sugared top when you are ready to serve. I love to watch as everyone excitedly cracks through the glass-like crust – it always creates such delight.

2. Pesto and Cheese Twist Bread

Having lots of family around means having lots of mouths to feed. This twisted bread is flavoured with basil pesto and Parmesan cheese and is incredibly moreish and addictive.  Its versatility makes them a guaranteed hit at any Christmas party buffet table – be it a great showstopper snack, the perfect addition to a cheeseboard or the ideal pairing to a warm soup. Bake them well in advance and watch them fly out of the bread bin.

Everyone wants beautiful straight teeth that can flash a million Rand smile but deciding how to go about getting one is enough to cause a toothache. Most South Africans have plenty of options between braces or aligners, but sometimes having too much choice isn’t a good thing. Dr Sheryl Smithies, a top Cape Town based aesthetic dental surgeon and facial aesthetic practitioner explains that most patients get to pick their preference based on what best suits their lifestyle. The revered dental genius shares some important information that people should consider before making that all important final decision. 

Firstly, brace yourself with the facts  

Most of us have either worn braces in our childhood, or know someone who has, but how much do we really know about their purpose and functionality? 

Braces are essentially wires made of either metal or porcelain which are attached to your teeth (the more modern ones can be fixed behind). More wires and rubber bands are then used to create tension, effectively forcing the teeth to move into the correct position. It’s a slow and very tedious process and can cause uncomfortable pain too. 

In contract to this, aligners like Invisalign are a more advanced type of orthodontic treatment. These are made of plastic and are custom-made to securely fit around only the teeth that need straightening, rather than the whole mouth. Small bumps of composite resin, which is like a tooth-coloured filling material, is used to help the aligner grip the tooth and each one then moves the teeth separately but rapidly, in a step-by-step fashion until it achieves the final layout, with very little discomfort. 

Secondly, brush up on the pros and cons of each 

The pro’s for both are the same – whichever one you go with; you’re guaranteed to get straighter teeth over time. Braces, however, can be very painful, especially at the onset with the wires cutting the lips and inside of the cheeks. There is also the risk of them causing potentially irreversible damage to teeth and bone structure, especially over a long period of time and it can sometimes be tricky to get the teeth into the correct positions.  It is difficult to get precise movements with a brace and because part of the tooth is covered with a wire, cleaning can become awkward too, and this can lead to potentially significant tooth decay. Braces also require an individual to have regular check-ups at their dentist usually every 4-6 weeks, so this is something to bear in mind too.

If this scares you, then aligners are probably the better option. Not only is this the most advanced way of moving teeth, but they are much easier to clean and there is very little discomfort, except perhaps over the first three days when the mouth is getting used to them. 

The almost transparent look of an aligner is especially attractive to older patients who do not want something that is noticeable. If you stay away from some foods like turmeric which can stain, you probably will only need to see a dentist every 3-4 months, which is also welcome news for those with busy lives. 

Then chew on the costs  

Costs vary depending on the type and length of treatment and every patient will have a different set of circumstances.

Braces can cost anywhere from R30 000 to R70 000, whilst the price bracket for aligners starts from R25,000 to R110,000. Again, this depends on the number of aligners a person needs and the brand. 

Finally, choose the one that aligns with you

Because braces are bonded onto your teeth, they require little input from you when it comes to maintenance and so are best suited to those people who are not as diligent with their dental care. The only significant changes you will need to make will be to your eating habits (things like chewing gum is a complete no), and perhaps adding new toothbrushes to your teeth cleaning tools. You should also be prepared for a significant change in your appearance when you smile as well as lots of pain. 

Aligners on the other hand are a much quicker treatment as they target only the teeth that need to move, as opposed to all the teeth. They therefore are better suited to those who want a quick transformation but still value comfort, aesthetics and ease of use, and who like to be able to clean their teeth well. 

Let’s be honest – we’re all tired…

The truth is that fatigue is a very common feeling for most of us at this time of year, as we deal with a year’s worth of pressure in addition to the demands of always being available and having to respond instantly. This has blurred the lines between our work and home life, causing a tiresome imbalance.

In the workplace, our fatigue levels have been compounded by several changes that have been made since the pandemic, often implemented in haste and, thus, incorrectly. Change is only successful if the right change system is used and implemented with the right partners. As a coach, trainer and co-founder of We Do Change, Rochelle Roos is determined to help individuals and organisations embrace change positively and seamlessly to overcome change fatigue in the workplace.

Here are Rochelle Roos’ top ten concepts to apply…

1. Firstly, don’t be afraid of change

Big, or small, change is all around us – it is a part of who we are and is necessary because there is always room for improvement. Some people love change and embrace the uncertainty while others fear it, simply because they don’t know how to deal with the dramatic, sudden alterations that threaten the status quo.

In our change management programmes, we clearly explain the changes that are being introduced to quell worry and concern. Communication is key to ensuring that everyone understands that things are under control, the change process is rational, and the emotional responses people feel towards this change are not ignored.

2. Visualise change 

Work with a small representative group to discover and visualise the result from idea to impact. People want to see the change to know what impact it will have on them. Only then will the process create greater empathy, be more transparent, and foster trust amongst employees.

3. Model change in-house

Before embarking on any changes, it is crucial to get the right people on your side that have the right influence to affect this change and reinforce it through their behaviour. Creating a shared purpose as to why you are embarking on this change journey is very important as the motivation for change is often more important than the change itself. If you have created a shared understanding as to why change is needed, you have created the opportunity for change to happen organically.

4. Be prepared for peaks and troughs 

Like with anything new, big risky changes can generate excitement at the start, but the unfamiliar territory can cause disarray and things can quickly come crashing down. Family therapist, Virginia Satir, calls this the Change Curve, where usual behaviours don’t work so performance drops and people often revert to their previous habits. This can be minimised by adopting evolutionary, incremental change that reduces the dip into chaos.

5. Have strong leadership 

Effective change needs resilient leaders that possess maturity, patience, and the ability to pull people together and see the change process through. According to Dr. John Kotter, Harvard Business School professor and entrepreneur, having a guiding coalition – a group of individuals within an organisation who are the social leaders of the change initiatives – is essential. These early adopters bring expertise, energy, and perspective across a variety of areas and are willing to try something new, even if it’s not perfect, to create the movement of change.

6. Don’t change everything at once 

There is a strong narrative across multiple organisations that changes are introduced several times a year before they reap any reward or benefit from the previous change.

If your organisation starts with a new change initiative and before seeing it through, jumps onto another and another, it creates turmoil and uncertainty that will soon become part of the organisation’s DNA.  Symptoms like having too much work, not completing tasks and multi-tasking causes bottlenecks and dependencies. It also slows down any chance of progress and employees begin to exhibit signs of change fatigue on both personal and professional levels.

7. Change up your belief structure  

Many organisations seem to be stuck in a cycle of change without ever achieving real results which reflects negatively on the belief systems of employees. Unsuccessful or rather unsupported change means employees either believe that leaders are giving it  lip service and not fully supporting the change initiative, or that there isn’t real influence over managing the change from both sides. To change behaviour we need to look at changing the environment first.

Creating conditions in which the behaviour that you consider desirable will be easier and more natural than it is now! This means that for us to change the “culture” we need to create new belief systems for the people in the organisation; and you create new belief systems through new experiences.

8. Welcome resistance 

Resistance to change is not a bad thing. It should instead be seen as a feedback vehicle for leaders, helping them to gather information from the people that are going through the change. I strongly believe people matter, relationships matter. People don’t resist change; they resist being changed and having the change being forced upon them. Let’s start involving people in the change effort.

9. Establish the right feedback loops 

Don’t rely on PowerPoint presentations, email or even inspiring words painted on walls to communicate change. Instead find ways to have face-to-face conversations with the people on the ground and create a platform where they feel safe to express their concerns. This will help develop unity, alignment, and a shared purpose.

10. Measure it

Be deliberate about what improvement you are trying to seek and how to measure it. Only then will you avoid unreflective knee-jerk responses. If the goal is to continually develop a fit-for-purpose capability through your change initiatives, you need to capture the correct data to learn if the process is working.

Embracing change positively and seamlessly to overcome change fatigue in the workplace begins with understanding these concepts and finding the right partner to help you implement it properly for lasting success.