Packed schedule. Scattered mind. That feeling of being pulled in 10,000 directions with no end of the mounting tasks in sight. There may come a time when feeling overwhelmed stops becoming a temporary phase and starts becoming a way of life.
That’s when it’s time to do something before your head explodes.
A previous post on overcoming overwhelm served up two quick tips for paring down your schedule in the immediate present. But if overwhelm keeps becoming a way of life, you may need to do more than rework your schedule every 17 minutes.
You want to dig deeper to discover why this pattern of overwhelm has become as automatic as breathing. Then stop doing whatever it is you’re doing to perpetuate this chaos.
Overcome overwhelm by uncovering source
“Just say no!” That’s one of the constant mantras we may hear – or think – when we’re trying to pare down our schedules to
And yes, saying NO will contribute to fixing the overwhelm problem. But the it doesn’t solve the problem of why we can’t seem to say NO in the first place. I’ve dug deep into this one on many occasions, and I’ve come up with several things that tend to lock me into an overwhelmed state.
Why we can’t say NO
People pleasing
If we say no to someone, they may no longer like us. In fact, they may start to badmouth us or even get us blacklisted from our profession – or the world. Then we’ll NEVER get any work or invitations to anything, every, for the rest of eternity.
How true is it? Not very.
Sure, people may get upset if you turn down something they’re offering. But if they like you anyway, it won’t matter. And if they only like you if you agree to everything they ask, then they’re not your friend anyone.
Fear of (fill in the blank)
If we don’t say YES to everything, we may:
- Lose opportunities waiting for us
- Be unable to properly network and grow our business
- Never be offered work again, ever, which will leave us broke, homeless and living under a bridge
How true is it? Meh.
While we probably do need to say yes to some things in order to keep dog treats in the cookie jar and our business moving in an upward direction, saying yes to EVERYTHING could keep us stuck.
We may be stuck with events, assignments or clients that bring us down instead of build us up. And we might have too much on our plates to be truly open when the really great things come.
Addictive mindset of MORE
Since some work, networking and activities are good, MORE and MORE work and networking and activities must be EVEN BETTER, right?
How true is it? To an extent, but….
More work, networking and activities may be even better – as long as you don’t schedule them all for the SAME WEEK. Geesh.
Yes, the addictive mindset can come creeping in everywhere, even when it comes to overbooking our schedules or taking on more than any human who actually sleeps could ever accomplish in a given time period.
Belief that we are superhuman
That stuff about only having 24 hours in the day, or actually needing to rest during those precious hours is hogwash! I am Superman. I am Wonder Woman! I can leap tall buildings while running 16 errands all in a single bound. Sure, I can do it. Just send more responsibility my way!
How true is it? Hahahahhahahaha
So now what?
If any (or all?) of the above reasons for saying too much YES resonates with you, you know exactly where to start. Start with the reason that calls to you the most.
Then change your beliefs and your actions will follow. Or start on the other end. Change your actions and your beliefs will follow. If you’re sincere about making a change, as well as honest, open and willing to move forward, you can nip this stuff in the bud and ensure your schedule has enough time for sleep.
Want me to walk with you through it? Schedule a free coaching call today.
I help amazingly creative souls who are struggling with overwhelm get their dazzle back so they rock their world.
Rynski 3-Minute Coaching: Why overwhelm happens (repeatedly)
Rynski 3-Minute Coaching: Overcoming the overwhelm habit
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