Well, I don’t know about you but when I get overwhelmed, nothing happens. Literally and I waste a whole bunch of my time and don’t achieve very much at all.
It’s one of the worst feelings, made worse by the fact that you are just running around in circles and getting stressed beyond belief. This is the main reason I created MY PA. I was tired of getting to the end of the week not feeling that I had achieved enough and totally stressed out by feelings of overwhelm.
Overwhelm happens when a stressful situation gets to be just too much for us to handle. We often experience it when we have a heavy volume of work, or even when we are so motivated and have so many ideas we don’t know what to do first. We can also become overwhelmed when we have a to-do list that is daunting. That’s if we have a list at all!
There are many reasons you could be feeling overwhelmed but here are the main ones.
You just have too much to do and too much in your head!
Simply stop, take a breath and write everything down that is in your head.Remember you can only do one thing at once and most probably nothing really bad is going to happen if we don’t complete it all done in one day.
You don't have a plan
“If you don’t know where you are going, you’ll end up someplace else.” ― Yogi
So many people fail to plan and mostly because they don't think they have to time to plan. They are so busy being busy. If only they realised that by planning they would save so much time and also feel so much more in control plus more likely to achieve the level of success they are striving.
If you don't have a plan you can start now. Simply go to a place away from distractions with a pen and paper and start by writing your vision and your BIG goals. Better still you can download the MY PA Business plan for FREE at this link https://www.mypaplanner.com/download
You’re setting unrealistic expectations of yourself
This is such a common reason. We all think that we have more time than we do and we can get more done than is actually physically possible. This is where the plan comes in. Make sure you schedule everything you do, including shopping, meal prep, school runs, exercise, etc etc. Everything takes time and if we accept this then this is the first battle won. Then every morning or even the night before write 3 major goals you need to achieve in the day that which going to drive your business forward. Don’t do anything else until you have done this. Make this your first action of every day. Make sure you schedule these goals in your day, and use any leftover time to do the less important or more mundane tasks. Once we accept there are only so many hours in the day and that we are making the most of that time and being productive the stress will melt away. This really is a game changer!
You're constantly being distracted by notifications
This is such a time suck. You get a message and reply and then another. You check your Facebook/ Twitter/ IG or Linkedin. Either turn them off or ignore them and then devote a particular time in the day to check them. Preferably after you have achieved your three main goals. You will feel so much more in control of your time. You can also make it a reward to check your notifications at the end of the day.
You are not taking care of yourself
It’s so easy to put everyone or everything ahead of ourselves but we just end up feeling exhausted, demotivated and overwhelmed. Make sure you schedule ‘Me time’. Find a vacation every day, even if it’s just a walk outside, meditating. Do anything that will give you a complete break. You may be saying to yourself that you don’t have time but I can promise you, you ’ll be twice as productive afterwards.
PROCRASTINATING
You may have a task ahead that you are finding challenging. Suddenly paralysis! You don’t know how to do it but it’s stopping you from doing everything else as well. Work is backing up and you are feeling overwhelmed again. Well have you ever heard the phrase ‘ Eat that Frog’ ?
As Mark Twain once said “If it's your job to eat a frog, it's best to do it first thing in the morning. And if it's your job to eat two frogs, it's best to eat the biggest one first.” ... Eating the frog means to just do it, otherwise the frog will eat you meaning that you'll end up procrastinating it the whole day.
Whatever you need to do you will be able to figure out how to do it. There is a youtube video on just about everything. There is great support for most apps and if you really can not do it then find someone who can.
Perfectionism
Always trying to either be or have things perfect will cause you to be overwhelmed because everything will take longer to complete and you 'll never match up to your expectations. You are almost setting yourself up to fail. If you are feeling under pressure then try and choose the line of least resistance.
You are running on empty
Staying up late to finish something, not getting enough sleep, skipping meals. None of this is good news and you will just end up feeling depleted. Make sure you get your 8 hours sleep. Get into a habit of self-care. Wake up and feed your body with something nutritious. Take time to stop and meditate, even if it is only 5 minutes and make sure you do some sort of exercise every day.
Do you have any tips for overcoming overwhelm? If so would love to hear it in the comments below.