Drowning in Tasks, Overwhelm & Stress? Read on!

“Instead of asking, ‘Have I worked hard enough to deserve rest?’ ask, ‘Have I rested enough to do my most loving, meaningful work?”

-Nicola Jane Hobb

First we have to ask ourselves, is this an experience we are creating for ourselves?

Note that I’m not asking if it is you that are creating the number of task or thing’s that needs to be accomplished. That may or may not be within your control, but I’m merely asking about the experience of attempting to complete the tasks itself.

If your answer is yes, then we can totally change the experience of it.

Just this realisation itself will set you on a better path:

“If I created the reality of being swamped and overwhelmed … I can create a completely different reality. I’m not a victim of my circumstances.”

Imagine that you are doing all of your tasks with completely focus. You are calm, at peace and grateful for this moment.

Sounds impossible but I can assure it is not, just takes a little practice.

We need to begin by recognising that we’re incredibly stressed, and probably pretty tired. Acknowledgement and acceptance is key.

Next, start by dropping your attention into your body, notice how you feel. Notice the feeling of stress, of tiredness, of overwhelm feels in the body. Do this without judgment, instead, with full compassion. Create the space (container) to hold these feelings/emotions by taking some deep breaths into your lower belly. If it helps, repeat some self affirming sentences like “I am doing my best”, “I’ve got this” or “I’m okay” between the deep breaths. Do this from anywhere between 5 to 30 minutes.

It may seem counterintuitive to spend time on this when you already feel like there isn’t enough time but trust me, it will change the way you experience the journey because you are attending to your nervous system & mental well-being.

Next comes the practical steps: Using triage or an Eisenhower Box to streamline the most immediate tasks that needs to be attended to. Knowing what is essential in the moment will keep your mind focused & less likely to be overwhelmed. Here’s a sample of how the Eisenhower Box looks like:

Lastly, we create the new experience we want to have:

Now that you have streamlined the tasks, you can devote yourself to that one particular task with full attention & focus before moving onto the next one.

You are fully present, in the moment. You experience the moment as peaceful, calm, open and joyful.

If we are able to practice this, moment to moment, we might then enter what people refer to as flow states: working in such a way that is relaxed, fully present & immersed in the task itself.

Do give it a try & see how it goes for you. You might find yourself only able to sustain for a short period of time in the beginning before the feeling of overwhelm creeps back in, but just like a meditation practice, the key is to just keep going back to it as frequently & consistently as possible.