Five Tips for When You Have Too Much to Do
Too much to do, too little time. For many, this is a constant problem, but it seems to be especially evident during the holidays. With holidays, shopping, travel, family visits … things tend to pile up at the top of our already busy life.
This post was originally published on the Zen Habits site .
But no matter what time of year, the problem is the same: we have an endless list of tasks, and our days are too short. How can we deal with this in a smart way?
I will offer five sentences that suit me.
1. Use this as an opportunity to practice mindfulness.
In the midst of your stress and feelings of depression, you have the opportunity to be present. When you notice that you are feeling this way, take a look: notice how your body is feeling. Take a second to observe the physical sensations of your surroundings (sounds, lights, touch, etc.). Pay attention to how your body feels when your mind is spinning with worry or busyness.
No, stress and depression are not two of the most pleasant feelings, but this is not the end of the world. And if you see them as an opportunity to practice, learn, get better, then they can really be good news . They are your teachers, and now is your time to be considerate.
You don’t have to spend a full minute looking around, just take five or 10 seconds. Just watch how you feel, watch your surroundings, watch how your thoughts affect you. Just note, in a nutshell, and in that short time, you woke up from the dream we are in most of the time.
2. Realize that you cannot do everything at once.
You may have 20 things to do, or 100 … but you can’t do everything right now. You probably won’t be able to do them all, even in the next hour. How much can you actually do right now ? One.
This reminder is designed to free us from the thought that we need to do everything right now. We can not. Instead, it allows us to focus on just one thing . Just pick one task and focus on it. Because others, however urgent they may seem, cannot now be fulfilled. You can delegate them, eliminate them, delay their execution, but you cannot do all of them right now. So focus on one thing and give it your full attention. In my experience, this is the most rewarding way to work.
3. Pick an important task to focus on.
When we are busy, we often get into a mode of very fast execution of many small tasks. It feels like we’re throwing a lot of things off the list that might seem productive. But he just runs like a headless chicken.
If you’re going to focus on just one task, it’s best to make it good. Something that will make a worthwhile impact on your day, your work, your life. It probably isn’t answering a bunch of unimportant emails or checking Facebook posts. One big email that closes a deal, promotes a key project, helps someone’s life … that’s a bigger challenge. For me, writing is almost always the biggest influence I can make. It’s hard to know which task might have the greatest impact, but if you think a little, you can see which ones are probably less important and which are more important. If possible, choose one of the latter category.
However, you still have to complete smaller tasks. Answer other emails, run errands, clean the kitchen table. I like to take breaks between important things. Focus on doing something important, and then calm my brain by cleaning or replying to a few emails. The main thing is not to put off big tasks for small ones.
4. Participate in this task with intention.
After choosing an important task, postpone everything else for now. You cannot do them all now, so be here with whoever you have chosen. Breathe. Set an intention for this task: who are you doing it for and why? As for me, I often do my work tasks for you guys (my readers), but I do personal tasks for my family or to help myself. Set a simple intent: I am writing this article to help my readers who are struggling.
Then let this intention move you as you focus on the task at hand. Be present as you complete the task, observing how your body feels as you complete the task, allowing yourself to dissolve into the task, merging into it as fully as possible. You may have an urge to switch to something else – just notice it and stay with the urge, not allowing yourself to mindlessly follow it, and then return to the task when the urge dies down. Reflect on your intention, and then allow yourself to fully immerse yourself in the task.
5. Practice letting go with a smile.
Too many things to do and the desire to get everything done as soon as possible can actually get in the way. This desire to do everything is an obstacle. Fortunately, dealing with this obstacle is a great way!
Practice lets it go. Pay attention to what you think you need to do (your ideal) and let it go . Instead, tell yourself that you don’t know, and instead open up to the reality that is right in front of you: you can only complete one task. Be open to this idea and stress will be reduced.
And when you let go of your ideal and open up to reality, smile. Be grateful for the moment you have, rather than desire for the moment you don’t have. Smile and be happy now, and do not wait for happiness to come on some unspecified day.
In the end, will these suggestions take away your to-do list? No. You will always have a lot of to-do’s on your to-do list, and you won’t have enough time to do them all. It helps you deal with this fact and makes you more mindful and focused in the center of this reality.
Life is too short to be wasted on stress over a constant fact. We don’t need to waste time and mental energy doing too much. Instead, we can smile and be happy doing what we can do now.
5 Tips When You Have Too Much To Do | Zen habits