Last week I lost internet for two days, had to bring the car into the shop and had to run errands in the middle of the work day with my daughter because she had to go to work in the afternoon. I started noticing it was taking even longer to get started to work and I wasn’t focusing as well as usual. In the evenings I was watching more TV and getting attached to screens.
I realized I was overwhelmed and trying to escape the huge to-do list brought on by less time to work than usual. I can get that way if I have too many projects going at once. Or it’s a busy time for work.
Once I noticed it I was able to do something about it. I started by clearing my desk and consolidating my to do list. I caught up on some emails. I marked my top 10 to-dos.
Then I asked myself,
“Will I feel more or less overwhelmed if I don’t do anything right now?”
I knew I would get further behind if I continued to procrastinate. I would feel more overwhelmed because more things would be added to the list while I am trying to get out of doing work.
I started on my list, making sure I took my breaks. I ended up working on Saturday as well to get caught up. But, Monday felt great.
If I was working every weekend, then I would need to look at how much work and information I was bringing in.
Are you procrastinating on something? Could you be feeling overwhelmed? Do you need to take a few minutes to clean up and prioritize? Do you need to break a project down further? Do you need to keep focused on your current work instead of think of all the things you still need to do?
You won’t feel less overwhelmed if you keep procrastinating, that’s for sure.
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I have a $10 e-course to help tackle the different reasons for procrastination and how you can get out of from under. Get Things Done Procrastination eCourse.
Pix by woodleywonderworks
Yes, Beth! I think THIS is the reason I procrastinate *most* of the time! Because I am overwhelmed. But, once I actually look at a list, prioritize, then it seems it is easier to begin acting. Thanks for the reminder!
When I feel overwhelmed enough not to move, I usually look inside to see what is going on. Usually, I will find that it is just an inner resistance to the now. From there, I try to take a small step. It can be as simple as typing a word. From there, I can move forward one step at a time, breathing through each step.
Great ideas Daikuro!
I like to “force” myself to just do 15 minutes. You can do anything for 15 minutes. That breaks it for me in 95% of cases, but if not, at least it gets me started on something and I can switch to another task 🙂
PS that was the first course of yours I took!
Very cool!