Overwhelm is something we’ve all experienced at one stage or another. Whether you’re a business owner or an employee, we’ve all experienced the rising panic and worry, as we look at our ‘to do’ list and begin to feel a bit lost and weighed down by what we see.

That rising panic often leaves us feeling that there aren’t enough hours in the day, to complete everything we need to get done. Often, our first feeling is one of dread or even a slight queasiness, followed by an overwhelming need to avoid our ‘to do’ list altogether – further aggravating those feelings we’re experiencing, as overwhelm turns into a guilt-ridden procrastination.

But it doesn’t have to be this way.

Overwhelm is something that you can easily break – if you follow these 5 top tips.

Tip #1: Give yourself a break

This isn’t about running away from those things on your ‘to-do’ list – it’s about giving yourself some space to accurately assess your workload. Set aside 20-30 minutes to walk away from your work and calm down, before setting aside some time to accurately assess your to-do list, by going through the remaining steps below.

Tip #2: Get it out of your head

This tip is two-fold. Firstly, get everything out of your head and written down. We can often carry our ‘to-do’ list around in our heads – and this can quickly lead us to feel overwhelmed as we try to remember everything (and usually fail to do so!). So, write everything down. If you have a ‘to do’ list already – great! Just check there isn’t anything that needs to be added to it and written down.

Secondly, we need to get out of our head. Often, we tell ourselves we’re busy and don’t have enough time, but once we’ve written it all down, we can see it’s achievable in the timeframe we have. However, we can also get so used to telling ourselves we don’t have time or we’re busy and stressed – just thinking those words can leave us feeling that way! So, this is also about training yourself to tell yourself something more positive about how you’re feeling and how you perceive time.

Tip #3: Prioritise to avoid overwhelm

It’s only once you have everything written down, that you can then assess how much you need to do – and this is where prioritising comes in. We’re good at writing lists of things that need doing, but not so good at separating them out in priority order and into separate days and weeks in our diary. When you stare at a long list, you WILL feel panicked and overwhelmed – but if you break that down into things that need to be done today, this week, month, or even in this hour, it then starts to feel more manageable. So, separate your ‘to-do’ list out – firstly in priority order, then by day, week or month, based on how urgent each task is.

Tip #4: Take action

Now is the time to get focused on only what needs to be done now or today. Write down a new list, based only on what needs to be done today. Pick the first task – focus solely on that task and act on it!

Tip #5: Get support

Finally, overwhelm can often occur when we’re being too full-on with our business. This can happen if you’re not giving yourself time away from your business – so honour your working hours and those hours or days away from your business.

But support is also about getting in help when needed. If you’re struggling to manage everything yourself, get help in or outsource. Whether that’s a Virtual PA, a cleaner, someone to look after the children or someone to talk to – do what you need to do, to help alleviate the pressure associated with overwhelm in the first place.

What makes you feel overwhelmed in your business or at home? Why not share your experiences and coping techniques, in the comments section below!

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