1. No one likes a penny pincher: “Oh! But he was a tight-fisted hand at the grindstone, Scrooge! a squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous, old sinner! Hard and sharp as flint, from which no steel had ever struck out generous fire; secret, and self-contained, and solitary as an oyster.”
2. A sense of humor goes a long way: “There is nothing in the world so irresistibly contagious as laughter and good humor.”
3. Take advantage of life’s opportunities: “No space of regret can make amends for one life’s opportunity misused.”
4. Don’t just be nice around the holidays: “I will honour Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year. I will live in the Past, the Present, and the Future. The Spirits of all Three shall strive within me. I will not shut out the lessons that they teach!”
5. Don’t dwell on the past, but don’t forget it either: “I will live in the past, the present, and the future. The spirits of all three shall strive within me.”
6. You can teach an old dog new tricks: “Really, for a man who had been out of practice for so many years it was a splendid laugh!”
7. Developing a good catchphrase helps people remember you: “Bah,” said Scrooge, “Humbug.”
8. An alliterative nickname doesn’t hurt either: “God bless us every one!” said Tiny Tim, the last of all.”
What’s your favorite piece of advice? Is there a life lesson from Dickens that I missed? Let me know in the comments.
Also let me know what your favorite holiday books are!
Alison Doherty 
Perhaps Dickens most enduring life lessons are: don’t be born poor or lower class in England; always work for social reform because society can always be a better place for everyone; having a really descriptive name will make you memorable.
I think don’t be born poor in England is definitely a lesson in almost all of his books. Good call.