“Time was invented so that everything wouldn’t happen at once.” Albert Einstein
Do you ever feel like you have way too much to do and not enough time to do it? Feeling overwhelmed by a “to do” list that seems like it will take more time than is available to you can lead to stress and sleepless nights. Unfortunately the energy we expend on being stressed does nothing to help get anything done. In order to avoid the stress of “overwhelm” the first thing to do is to take a deep breath and look at things from a new perspective. As I say in my book, Stop the Stress Habit: change your perceptions and improve your health, it is not the situation itself, but rather your perception of that situation that creates your stress. To avoid a stress reaction to an overwhelming amount of work or other time demands, it is necessary to change your perception of those demands. Easier said than done? Well, let’s take a look at where to start.
Stressing over your workload or other commitments while you are commuting or all night when trying to sleep never makes any difference in the actual situation. Just thinking about work to be done and “stressing” about it does not minimize the workload, nor does it get the work completed. You may think the sense of urgency that is created helps you to work faster and stay focused. Some people say that stress is helpful in that way. However, losing sleep or getting sick because of the stress created by a large amount of work or too many demands on your time is not helpful. Avoid telling yourself anything resembling, “I’m so stressed out. I can’t believe how much I have to do!”
Anytime you are feeling overwhelmed by too much to do in too little time, make a list and schedule each item on your calendar. Once you see it all written out and scheduled, you do not have to continually figure out what to do next and worry if there is enough time to do it all. When you accomplish the tasks scheduled for one day, take some time to relax knowing that there is time scheduled to complete all your obligations. If you are still feeling overwhelmed after scheduling all your tasks, consider the following:
- You may find you need to arrange for new deadlines, scale down on the project, or seek assistance in order to meet the deadlines.
- Look at your calendar far in advance. Consider calling people to negotiate deadlines if necessary. If you have committed to something with a future deadline that you know will be difficult for you to honor without increasing your stress level, change the deadline to a mutually agreeable date.
- If you have committed to too much, determine if there are any commitments you can relinquish. If you choose this option, make sure you relinquish your commitment early enough for someone else to be found to complete those tasks.
- Delegate whatever tasks you can to other people. Remember, there is more than one way to do something. Even if others would complete the task differently than you, let them do whatever they can to help you—and be happy with the result.
- Look at your workload as a challenge—not as an oppressive obstacle. By scheduling things ahead of time, you will know there is an abundance of time available to accomplish all that you need to do. If you find there are things you are unable to fit into your schedule, then perhaps those are things you need to eliminate or delegate. Make your schedule realistic.
Although it may feel like a completely inaccurate statement, tell yourself there is an abundance of time available to complete everything. Even if you don’t believe it, just say it is so. Say this out loud: “There is an abundance of time available to me to complete all I need to do.” Vocalizing this statement helps to counteract your head chatter and thoughts that you don’t have enough time and helps to convince yourself that there is an abundance of time. Try it!
Namaste