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Do you often find yourself feeling overwhelmed?
Your daily To-Do list seems to be ever-expanding and never-ending, but you're still trying to squeeze in some quality time with friends. If only you could stop thinking about that humiliating comment you made during that meeting this morning... God, the cringe. Also, you should really call your Mom, it's been a while. Actually, when was the last time you washed your hair? Oh *bleep*, an email from your landlord. Did you forget to pay rent?
Suddenly everything's a blur and you're finding it hard to breathe...
Sound familiar? Keep reading.
Just for fun, I've decided to make the title of this blog post a play on words.
If you're able to figure it out by the time you're done reading, COMMENT your interpretation down below for a chance to win a Coaching Package worth $250 (incl. 3 Sessions).
You May Be An Addict
The text-book definition of an addict? According to Merriam-Webster an addict is someone exhibiting a compulsive, chronic, physiological or psychological need for a habit-forming substance, behavior, or activity.
Now, let's have a look at modern society, where we're rewarding productivity and (extremely) hard work left, right and downside up -- from a very young age.
There may be a few cultures where you're not judged based on productivity, but the majority of them will have you believe that how much you "get done" in a day is intrinsically tied to your personal worth.
The result is a world full of productivity-addicts.
We essentially have to be productive to feel good about ourselves.
Or else.
If, God forbid, we're not productive for a few hours -- let alone a few days or weeks -- we're masters at making ourselves feel incredibly guilty about it.
We don't even need a teacher, a parents or a boss to lecture us, judge us or yell at us... Oh no, we've got our very own, highly opinionated, inner critic to do that for us.
(Although their voice may sound eerily familiar to that teacher, parent or boss that used to yell at us...)
Let me ask you this... How do you define productivity?
Doing things you have to do?
Doing things that secure an income?
Doing things that others expect you to do?
Does it include doing things that you actually enjoy doing? How about going for walks that put your mind at ease? What about getting enough sleep so that your brain and body can restore their energy?
Doing "nothing" can sometimes be the most productive thing to do.
I invite you to check in with yourself around how you define productivity. Your definition of the term may need some updating to reflect actual human wellness, instead of machine output.
Prioritization Is A Skill
I get it, you've got a million-and-one things to do... "And they're all important, Dajana, okay?!"
First of all, let's ease up a bit.
Let's take a deep breath...
One more.
Breathe in...
And out...
And let's be honest.
We both know that not all of the things on your To-Do list are equally important.
It's just that because of our previously mentioned productivity-addiction, we tend to add a few too many things to our To-Do list of one single day.
"Because oh-em-gee, wouldn't it feel amazing to get all of those things done?!"
Would it, though? Wouldn't you just be completely wrecked and depleted at the end of that day? And wouldn't the quality of your work deteriorate the more you exhaust yourself?
The term "burnout" has been trending for a reason.
Let's remember for a second that you're a human being with limited mental and emotional resources. You're not a robot with an eternal power source. You gotta use your resources wisely.
If you want to continue making an unrealistically long To-Do list every single day, be my guest... But at least take my advice and apply this one extremely important skill to it: prioritization.
What's actually important to get done TODAY? Prioritize getting that done.
Got time, energy and motivation left?
Awesome, what else do you want to do?
If you're someone who is highly addicted to productivity, I invite you to add breaks, naps, walks, etc. to your To-Do list, too.
And no cheating -- make sure they're right up there among your top priorities!
Rest is productive, too.
Quit The Time-Travel
If you thought time-travel was something you'd only read about in novels, here's a fun fact for ya.
We time-travel most of the time we're awake.
We're either reflecting about things that happened in the past, or worrying about things that may (or may not) happen in the future.
Guess where we spend the least of our waking hours?
The present.
The here and now.
This moment, right here.
Even this moment that you're reading this... Can you pause for a second?
Just stop, pause, and be here.
Here's what's helpful to realize...
Life is only happening in this moment you're in right now.
The past is long gone and nobody knows what the future will bring.
An asteroid may wipe out all of humanity tomorrow.
(*Cue Ariana Grande singing "Just Look Up"*)
Your feeling of overwhelm is essentially caused by the time-travel you keep doing in your head. The ping-pong'ing between past experiences and future worries.
Here's the ultimate secret to eliminating overwhelm... It can't exist if you are truly, fully present in this moment, right here.
If you find yourself feeling overwhelmed, just come back to the present. Don't stress about the past. Don't worry about the future. They're not real right now.
This moment right here is real.
This is where you are living.
This is where you have choice.
Ultimately, the only thing you can do is choose is how you want to spend this very moment.
Make a choice. Do the thing. Live in the moment.
Win A $250 Coaching Package
We're at the end of the blog post, and therefore, only one question remains... Did you figure out the meaning behind "The Gift Against Overwhelm"?
Let me know in the comments!
You might just win a Coaching Package worth $250 (incl. 3 Sessions).
Not sure about the winning answer, but curious to learn more about coaching?
Book a free discovery session of 30 minutes, and experience first-hand what I can do for you as a coach. We'll chat about what's important to you right now, your life goals, and what might be holding you back from reaching them.
It's an opportunity to dig a little deeper, get to know yourself better, and really invest in your growth and self-development.