I’m going to be taking the next two weeks off of blogging; next week because of Thanksgiving and the following week for vacation as Joe and I are celebrating our belated one year anniversary at the same place where we had our honeymoon. And a break is so needed right now.
I don’t know about you, but this past month has been packed! For me, after moving back to the city, things really picked up with socializing and work. I have been going into the office, I’m working hard for a big end of year push with my current deals, and have been feeling stretched thin. This busyness is what I have been waiting and yearning for since things dramatically slowed down nearly two years ago, but the past month has worn me out.
Today I want to share my best tips for handling an overwhelming week in hopes that this will be especially helpful going into the holiday season. I’d also love to hear how you deal when there is a lot on your plate!
Put everything on your calendar
I am a big proponent of using a digital calendar to organize your life. When I have a busy week coming up, I put everything on my calendar – even tasks I wouldn’t normally, like laundry for example. If I have a lot of commitments I am bound to worry about getting everything done. Therefore, if I actually schedule all of the tasks I want to accomplish I’ll be able to see that there really is time for it all instead of wondering when everything will get done.
Eliminate the nonessential
In the same vein, you may realize when you are scheduling that there isn’t actually time for everything, so now you can consider what to eliminate. Are there tasks that can be pushed to next week? Are there things your spouse, coworker, or friend can help you out with? Is there something you do manually that you could be automating going forward so you don’t have to think about it? Since you can’t create more time, you have to figure out what your time actually needs to be used for.
Prep as much as possible
We all know that prior planning prevents poor performance. Prepping (whether that’s your meals, your outfits, your bag for work) can help you to have to think about less each day and instead you can be totally focused on the important work that is filling up your calendar. When I’m reviewing my week, I like to schedule in prep time and actually write down what I will work so I know I’ll be prepared for everything to come.
Incorporate breaks
This could be 5 minute breaks throughout the day or a night to yourself one day of the week – whatever you can afford to put into your schedule make sure you do. It can be easy to have the feeling that you need to just push through, but you will show up to each meeting and task and event as your best if you incorporate breaks.
Celebrate the small and large wins
Sometimes it’s a win as small as making it through the day and sometimes it’s as large as crushing your most important meeting of the week. Taking time to appreciate your progress gives you positive momentum to continue and finish out your week strong.
Time keeps moving, no matter what
During the busiest of weeks, when I feel the most overwhelmed, I remind myself that time is going to keep moving forward no matter what and this too shall pass. I try to do my best each week and improve how I handle challenges going forward, but at the end of the day I recognize that this week will come to an end regardless of what I do. So it’s best to enjoy and stay calm!
How do you handle challenging, busy weeks? What’s your best advice?
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