How can you stay productive when you're overwhelmed?
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Being overwhelmed by work can make you feel stressed, anxious, and demotivated. You may struggle to focus, prioritize, and complete your tasks on time. However, you don't have to let overwhelm paralyze you or affect your productivity. Here are some tips on how to stay productive when you're overwhelmed.
The first step to overcome overwhelm is to identify what is causing it. Is it a specific project, deadline, client, or expectation? Is it a lack of resources, support, or skills? Is it a personal issue, such as health, family, or finances? Once you know the source of your overwhelm, you can address it more effectively and find solutions.
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Renuu Tandon, GPHR, SHRM-SCP
Community Top Voice|| XLRI || Talent Leader || Leadership Coach || Writer
When you are overwhelmed, you can think so you need to first create a pause or space for you to be able to identify the source. Some best ways to disconnect - go for a walk, listen to music, cook, and be in silence. Once you're in this space and your nerves have settled, then begin to identify the source - is this a one-time occurrence or is there a pattern - do people or situations trigger overwhelm - what is the intensity of this overwhelm
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Alessia Poletti, ICF ACC
🌱 Director, Head of Marketing Learning & Enablement Global | 🎯 Personal Branding Coach
First of all you have to identify the root cause of your overwhelming. One thing I've found helpful is the "WHY" technique. It could seem simple and even stupid but give it a try! Each time you feel overwhelmed begin to ask yourself a series of "why?" For example: - Why are you feeling in this way? - Because I've missed a deadline - Why did you miss it? - Because I have too many things to do at the same time - And why do you have so many things to do? - Because I'm not delegating to anyone - And why don't you delegate? - Because I need to be in control. Boom. You have identified the root cause of your feeling.
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One of the reasons you may feel overwhelmed is that you have too many things to do and not enough time to do them. To cope with this, you need to break down your work into smaller and more manageable chunks. You can use a tool like a to-do list, a calendar, or a project management app to organize your tasks by priority, urgency, and complexity. Then, you can focus on one task at a time and track your progress.
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Sarah Loughran Goulbourne
Leadership, Culture & Development Coach | Relationship Management Expert | Purpose Driven Motivator
I love this advice and would add, focus on the highest priory tasks first. Make sure the necessities are taken care of. Often the less important tasks will naturally fall off the list.
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Deepika Shah
From Surviving to Thriving in your relationship | Relationship Consultant | Toxic Relationship Expert | Speaker | Let's make your Life Epic
The best way to feel relaxed is by listing down everything that you have to complete Divide them into these heads - Work-related - Personal - Home - Kids Delegate what you can and set the top 3 you need to complete to feel relaxed
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Another way to reduce your workload and stress is to delegate or outsource some of your tasks. You can ask for help from your colleagues, manager, or mentor if you need guidance, feedback, or assistance. You can also hire a freelancer, a contractor, or a service provider to handle some of the tasks that are not essential or core to your role. This way, you can free up some time and energy for the tasks that require your attention and expertise.
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Sarah Loughran Goulbourne
Leadership, Culture & Development Coach | Relationship Management Expert | Purpose Driven Motivator
When delegating, ask yourself, is there someone that can do this better and faster than I can? If the answer is yes, that is a task worth delegating.
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Sana Ross
Neuroscience-Driven Performance Coach🎙️ Live Show Host ✍️ Writer 🌱 Startup Mentor
Look through your to-do list for tasks that others can do, especially those that are time-consuming but not necessarily needing your expertise. When delegating, be clear about what you need, including deadlines and any specific methods to follow. Give people the autonomy to complete the task their way. Make sure your delegates understand the task's priority relative to other work. Set up checkpoints or regular updates to stay informed without micromanaging. Delegation can lead to new methods or improvements, so be receptive to suggestions from those you’ve delegated to. Recognize and appreciate the work done by others, reinforcing a positive delegation practice.
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Overwhelm can also result from not having clear boundaries between your work and personal life. You may feel pressured to work longer hours, answer emails at night, or take on more responsibilities than you can handle. To prevent this, you need to set boundaries and communicate them to your stakeholders. You can define your working hours, availability, scope, and expectations, and stick to them. You can also learn to say no to requests that are unreasonable, irrelevant, or unrealistic.
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Renuu Tandon, GPHR, SHRM-SCP
Community Top Voice|| XLRI || Talent Leader || Leadership Coach || Writer
Overwhelm can result because you may just be a 'nice' person - you can't say no, you pick up the slack for others, you are willing to do extra. Traditional norms, unconscious biases and stereotypes can also play a role : - people from certain cultures are expected to have a standard 12-14 hrs workday. - Women need to step up if they wish to be taken seriously at workplaces - you have to do it all ( you can't / shouldn't pay someone to do your personal work - culture/ affordability etc) These can cause deep harm and impede personal progress.
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Finally, you need to take care of yourself physically, mentally, and emotionally when you're overwhelmed. You can do this by following a healthy routine that includes adequate sleep, nutrition, hydration, and exercise. You can also practice relaxation techniques, such as meditation, breathing, or yoga, to calm your mind and body. Additionally, you can seek support from your friends, family, or a professional coach or therapist if you need someone to talk to or vent.
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Yukari Mittermüller-Motohashi
【👧Open to new connections👧】Talent acquisition & recruitment specialist - trilingual🇯🇵🇬🇧🇩🇪 採用・人事担当。差別のない組織を作りたい。皆違って皆才能がある。その才能を大切にする人事でありたい🍀Ich liebe Deutschland | 勝手に茨城県推しやってます❤
敢えて日本語で書きますが、おそらく自分をケアすることが一番おろそかになるのが日本人な気がします。生産的であることを会社から求められ、自身もそれにこたえるために身体・精神を酷使してしまっている人が多いように思います。 是非よく寝て、食べて、笑って仕事のことを忘れる時間も必要であることがもっと世間に広まってほしいです。
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Simin Liang
Breakthrough Therapist| Not seeking M+ followers,I just want to help 1 person at a time |Author on Boosting Self-esteem |RTT practitioner | Mom | ✨ #StressManagement ✨RegainConfidence ✨GetYouOutofDepression ✨MoneyBlock
When I feel overwhelmed, the only thing I need to think is to forgive myself if I do nothing that day. Once your mental well-being is not in a good place, just forgive yourself if you are just lying down in bed, or watch a nice movie, you might feel you have lots of things to do, and you might feel guilty that you are not productive, but it doesn’t matter. Your mental well-being is more important than anything at the present. So just take a deep breath, do whatever makes you feel better, because work is always there, you can do it another, take a good time just looking inside of what you need, and everything will get better.
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Nadia Siyotula
Certified Business & NLP Life Coach Practitioner, NLP Trainer, Public Speaker at Coach a Trainer Academy PTY LTD
To stay productive when overwhelmed, try the "Power Hour" technique. Set a timer for one hour and commit to tackling a specific task during that time. By breaking your work into manageable chunks, you'll make progress, regain control, and boost your confidence. After each "Power Hour," reward yourself with a short break and a small treat to stay motivated. This will empower you to take charge of your workload and achieve great.
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Renuu Tandon, GPHR, SHRM-SCP
Community Top Voice|| XLRI || Talent Leader || Leadership Coach || Writer
When was the last time you spent time with 'You' ? Probably never! We've been conditioned over the years that it is selfish to put yourself first and that sacrifice is the ultimate reward. It's time to challenge this thinking - wear your own oxygen mask first. Create space in your week to spend time with yourself - a coffee/walk, time for reflection, spend time on hobbies, or just do nothing!
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