3 Tips to Help Manage Overwhelm

Every day our lives get busier. We’re balancing work, family, friends and side hustles all while trying to eat right, drink water, exercise and maintain our mental health in a world that has more than a thing or two going on. Being busy isn’t new to me, but I’m tired…and I know you are too! While quarantine has kept us separated from things as we know it – life has not completely slowed down or at least mine hasn’t.

I always joke that I have a self-replenishing to-do list because the thing will NEVER end. So, with all that we must do, how do we get it done without feeling overwhelmed? Today on the blog, I thought I would share the top 3 things I do to manage overwhelm.

MAKE A LIST OF EVERYTHING THAT YOU NEED TO DO.

The worst thing that you can do is keep all your to-do’s in your head. You have to write them down. Now, I’m old school and I love a good planner, but you can utilize your Notes app in your phone or just write it down on a piece of paper. The key here is to get it out of your head. You’ll never able to organize it if it’s stuck in your head, and it will automatically make you feel like it’s all too much. Write it down.

PRIORITIZE THE LIST AND IDENTIFY WHAT YOU NEED TO DO VS. WHAT YOU WANT TO DO.

I need to pay my bills. I want to organize my kitchen drawers. And knowing the difference between the two is critical in prioritizing what you do and when you do it. Sadly, everything cannot be done today, it just can’t – so you’ve got to make some calls on what is critical for you to get done. When deciding what category your to-do’s go in, consider:

• Do I have deadline that I need to meet?

• Is finishing a larger project dependent on this task getting done?

• Is this essential to me meeting a goal?

• Is someone depending on me to get this done?

• Is this critical to the well-being of myself or my family?

ASSIGN NO MORE THAN 3 THINGS TO A DAY.

This is critical. Once you know what you need to do, do not overload your day. Assign no more than three things to your day that MUST get done. If you can get to more - great, but do not commit to doing more than three. If your days or anything like mine, you will have things pop up that you did not plan for that you will have to attend to. Only committing to getting three pre-planned things done will ensure success in getting them complete.

BONUS. IF YOU CAN COMPLETE THE ITEMS EARLY IN THE DAY – DO IT.

As I mentioned above, days (even when planned out) can be unpredictable. Get to your planned to-do’s early. Start your day with them so there is no question on whether or not they will get done.

I hope this is helpful as you navigate through the rest of this year. As you implement these tips, please let me know how they work for you!

Don’t be ruled by your to-do’s!

❤ Ty