5 ways to beat procrastination and wrap those gifts

While some people love wrapping holiday gifts, others put it off until the last possible moment. If you tend to procrastinate, use these five tips to get motivated and finally finish your holiday duties.

Arming yourself with all the necessary supplies and a clean work area can help motivate you to take care of holiday gift-wrapping. Clear off a desk, or set up a table in your spare room that will be dedicated to gift-wrapping, and outfit the area with all the essentials.

You'll need an assortment of wrapping paper, tissue paper, boxes, gift bags, tape, scissors, bows, ribbon, gift labels, pens, holiday stickers, and any other add-ons you think you might need.

Make gift-wrapping a fun event by inviting over a couple of friends, opening a bottle of wine (adults only) and catching up while you wrap. Of course, you'll want to make sure you don't wrap any of the attendees' gifts that night!

Bring a TV or computer into your gift-wrapping room and reward yourself for staying on wrapping by watching your favourite "brain candy" on television or online. This is an especially effective reward if you normally limit your TV or mass media intake.

Will you be sending a gift to a rival sports fan? Then why not surprise them by wrapping the present in paper emblazoned with their rival team's logo? Pick up novelty gift wrapping paper and have fun with it; think cartoon characters, superhero themes and kids' paper for grown-ups.

Are you still having trouble mustering up the mojo to wrap presents? There's no shame in outsourcing. Many stores and shopping malls offer free or donation-based gift-wrapping services. Take advantage of as many of them as you can.

Preparing for the holidays can be a busy and stressful time, but exchanging gifts with loved ones is one of its rewards. If you use these five tips for overcoming procrastination, you'll have your gifts wrapped in plenty of time for holiday parties and gift exchanges.