I Definitely Did Not See This Coming

I vowed that this year I’d be at my personal best. Reach new levels of shedding anxiety and overwhelm and make life easier, simpler…BETTER.

I was euphoric coming back from a ten day getaway – getting a mental and physical break and re-energized to jump back in.

Bring it on world.

I’m gonna push through what I thought was possible and make 2017 the most incredible year yet.

And then it happened.

It took me by surprise, slowly lurking on the sidelines.

And then BAM…right in my face.

Everywhere I turned “it” was there.

A suitcase or backpack to be unpacked.

Two weeks of unopened mail covering my kitchen counter.

Piles of laundry strewn in the kids rooms.

Bananas that weren’t thrown out were stinking in a bowl. (Thanks hubby!)

Overwhelm literally rose up in my body. I could feel it from my gut to my lungs to a big (no, massive) lump in my throat.

And then all I could think about were the masses of emails that were piled up in my inbox, the pile of holiday cards that still needed addresses, the training I promised my audience and I literally…felt ill.

How would I reach my big goals when I could barely stay afloat in my own living room?

Maybe you’ve been there before.

Pumped to make epic changes, truly internalizing the fierce power you know you have inside you – to then get bogged down, feeling suffocated by all the “stuff.”

The mundane stuff.
The stuff that needs to get done.
The OVERWHELMING stuff.

Trust me, no matter how good your intentions, it happens.

And you know what? It’s OKAY.

In fact, it’s what makes you your loving, overachieving, nurturing self.

What’s NOT okay is to get stuck in this type of crippling thinking.

To let it take control of your actions, paralyze you or stunt your growth.

So here’s what to do instead. (And yes, it’s in a 3-step easy peasy process because that’s what I do). 😉

STEP ONE: Acknowledge the overwhelm.

Yup, that’s right. Take it in. Let it settle. Acknowledge what’s happening.

But limit this time to 5 minutes. Yes, five minutes.

Not three hours of wallowing. Not two days of procrastinating.

But 5 minutes to recognize you got a lot of shizzle going on and you need a plan to get out from under it.

STEP TWO: Do a MASSIVE brain dump. 

Get a piece of paper (or open a word doc). And write like a crazy person. Write down every single thought that comes to mind about what you need to get done.

There’s something about writing that is just so cathartic. It’s this instant release of overflow and anxiety swirling around in your brain. And all that stuff that’s up there is preventing you from taking the right next step.

Writing down everything also helps you ‘SEE’ priorities.

For instance, when I was writing “do kids laundry” and “go through mail” – I could immediately ‘SEE’ that the mail was more important. The boys have enough clothes to get through the week, but I couldn’t risk being late on bills.

With a million thoughts swirling in my mind, I was motionless. I didn’t know what to focus on first.

But as soon as I saw it on paper, it was clear to me.

STEP THREE: Look at your list and prioritize next steps.

Here’s a question I constantly ask myself:

“If there were only three things I could get done all day, what would they be?”

Of course there about 87,000 things you’d like to get done in a day. But what are your TOP 3? What are the MOST IMPORTANT tasks that you really have to get done?

Focus on those and watch your motivation and productivity take on new heights.

Okay, so those are the steps I go through when I’m drowning in overwhelm, and I know you can do these too.

Quick Recap:
1) Acknowledge the overwhelm (but don’t wallow more than 5 minutes)
2) Do a massive brain dump (write it ALL down)
3) Prioritize and focus on your TOP 3 most important tasks

Let me know this in the comments below:

What will your TOP 3 actions be for tomorrow? (The most important tasks you MUST get done). 

My accountability promise:
I will personally check in on you the day after you post your comment to make sure you got them done. So be sure to let me know your top three must-do’s below.

Every day of your gorgeous life is precious. There’s no time to get stuck in putting things off or waiting them out.

To kicking overwhelm to the curb, (waaaay on the other side of the street),

With all my love,
Mridu