Overcome Overwhelm

/

Yesterday, Clara and I went on an adventure. We grabbed her diaper bag and her hedgie (very important), and went off to get… her birth certificate.

 
 

Yup, that’s right. If you’ve been following along, Clara is 13 months old. So if it seems a bit late to be getting a birth certificate, you wouldn’t be wrong. The thing is, here in Missouri, you either have to go get a certificate in person, or you have to fill out a form and get it notarized to have one sent to you by mail. Either of which involves an outing, and being around people, and, well, things we really haven’t been doing this past year.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s been on my “to-do” list for the last year. But, since it wasn’t a high priority item, it didn’t get done. It’s one of those items that just hang around the bottom of the list for perpetuity. You know the items, right? The ones that need to get done eventually, but don’t have specific deadlines, and don’t cause any major problems by not being done. Those items.

But the problem with those items is while they don’t cause figurative “fires” in our lives by not getting done, they do carry mental weight with them. Day after day after day.

It’s exhausting.

Seriously. It’s mentally exhausting. Even when you’re not consciously thinking about those items, your brain hangs on to them and that’s work! Since your brain is extending energy thinking about (worrying about?) the “non-important” items, it can’t spend as much energy on the important items. Everything from your “willpower” to your focus is compromised just a little when you’ve got nagging tasks in the background.

Think of it as a computer (or phone!) with lots of tabs and apps open. Sure, you might not be using them right now, but they’re open and running. Even if it’s just in the background. They’re using space, bandwidth, and your precious battery.

Yikes!

So, how do we fix this? I’ll be sharing some of my favorite tips and tricks in the future. For now, however, here are my top TWO tried and true ways to clean up that hard drive (we were using the computer analogy… so I’m running with it).

  1. Make a brain dump

  2. Schedule a “get it done” day (or morning, a few hours, whatever your schedule allows)

 

Brain Dump

While a brain dump won’t magically cross items off your to-do list (in fact, you may find that you end up with a longer list than you expected!), it will help you get those items out of your brain.

If you’ve never done a brain dump, don’t be surprised if the activity both thrills and terrifies you. I’ve been doing them (though, not consistently enough I admit) for years. Every time I do one I feel surprised. There’s a moment of overwhelm, followed by relief. By literally dumping everything in your head onto paper- you can visually arrange it to make it work for you and your schedule.

There are several ways to handle the things you’ve dumped (again, I’ll go over some of my favorite methods in the future), but for right now- just do the dump.

So how do you do a brain dump? Take out a notebook and a pen or pencil and just start writing down everything that needs to be done. Write what you want to get done as well. Write it all done. Everything from cleaning the windows to washing the car; to looking up new insurance quotes to researching out the best way to invest in your 13-month-old’s future. Okay, your list might not look exactly like that, but you get the idea. Write it down.

Write it ALL down.

By writing it down you get it out of your brain, which frees up space for focusing on the tasks at hand. And when you focus, you can get things done quicker. Which means you have more time. And more time, means you can tackle one, two, or five things on that list. Brilliant, right?

 

Schedule a “Get it Done Day” (GIDD)

Okay, so you might not be able to schedule an entire day, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t give this a try. You can schedule a morning, an afternoon, or even a couple of hours to just “get things done.”

The key here, is to plan this time in advance. That way, you don’t give this time over to tackling items on your “must do” list. Anything that’s a “must do” should be scheduled for a different time or day. This GIDD is all about those little items. The phone calls that you’ve been putting off, the packages that need to be taken to the post office, the odds and ends of errands that have been floating around in the back of your head (or, now on your brain dump list).

Whatever it is that you’ve been putting off, Get it Done!

There’s something magical about getting a bunch of little nagging tasks done. It’s like when you have all your Christmas shopping done and the gifts wrapped by the beginning of December. You feel accomplished and a huge weight is lifted off your shoulders. And, dare I said it? You feel proud of yourself. You’re not rushing around last minute which means less stress, less headaches, and less crowds (or staring at the UPS truck crossing your fingers it’s coming your house with those few last orders…).

I’m serious about this. There is magic in accomplishing things. Our brain loves to accomplish things, finish tasks, and check off lists. Depending on your personality, you might even get a bit of a rush by seeing a beautifully crossed off list (guilty. I’ve been known to add something I’ve already completed to a list just so I can cross it off. Don’t judge, you’ve done it too).  Schedule a GIDD. You can thank me later.

 

What Are You Waiting For?

You know what to do, so do it!

Grab your calendar and block off 15-30 minutes for a brain dump. Getting started is the hardest part, so start by adding the tasks that are top off mind. Even if that means you’re adding items like “wash towels, fold sheets, and put away dishes”. As you start to list off the items that you need to do, the items that have been floating in the back of your head will start coming out. Don’t stop them. Don’t judge. Don’t stop to re-write, correct your spelling, or belittle yourself for not having these things done yet. Just write. Once you’ve made your list, you can go back and organize it. But for now, just write.

Don’t put that calendar away! Take a moment to schedule a day (or even a couple hours) to GET THINGS DONE. Save the big important tasks for another time. This is all about getting those little nagging tasks done. Use this time to do the little things that keep getting pushed to the bottom of your to-do list. Get it done, and then relish in the feeling of accomplishment. You’re welcome.

 Don’t you feel better already? I do. Just knowing that I have a plan to get some of this out of my head, on to paper, and D.O.N.E. done takes me overwhelm down just a notch. I hope it does for you too. Good luck, you got this!