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If you’re feeling overwhelmed by life, there’s a strong likelihood that it’s tied in with your sense of control. For many people, as soon as you feel control of your time slipping through your fingers, almost everything can start to feel like a massive burden weighing you down. If everything you’re responsible for is beginning to feel like one big, chaotic mess, here are a few ways to regain some focus…
Have Limits on Making Trade-Offs
We all have chores that we have to do that aren’t exactly gripping. If you try your best to exercise good time management, but your never-ending to-do list is still overwhelming you, then you need to start putting limits on your trade-offs. Unless some routine task is absolutely essential, if it won’t bring you closer to doing something more inspiring and worthwhile in the long run, then you’ve got better things you could be doing. Before you enter conversations where you know you might come out with some kind of obligation, try to decide what you will and won’t do. All good negotiators have clear ideas about what they will and won’t give up long before the sit-down begins. If you find your plans are always going awry, then this is certainly a habit you should try to develop.
Trust Other People to Help
If you’re constantly feeling out of control due to the amount of things you have on your to-do list, you may in fact have the opposite problem. Professional life coaches such as Joe Ranieri are always talking to clients who have problems trusting those around them to help. Many who feel like they’re losing control of their lives, are in fact so hellbent on being in control that they can’t bear letting anyone else touch even the smallest of their responsibilities. If there’s way too much on your to-do list, try to think of anyone who’d be willing to take this work themselves, or at least help you with it. If you’re applying this to a professional environment, there may not be anyone who can do a certain job quite as well as you, but you may be able to help them learn to do it satisfactorily.
Establish your Priorities as a Habit
The most successful people in the world make a daily habit out of prioritizing the things they have to do, and planning their day out around those priorities. Set yourself a short window each morning, five to ten minutes will usually do, which you’ll invest solely in setting priorities for yourself, even if it’s not a work day. Think about the non-negotiable appointments you have to attend and anything that you want to complete over the course of the day. From there, you can make a priority list and plan out the time you do have more effectively. As your day goes on, make a point of stopping every now and then, and determining whether or not you’re sticking to your priorities. If you slip, don’t be too hard on yourself, and try again the next day.
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