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How to stop feeling overwhelmed

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By Flying Solo contributor Brenda Berg

These feelings of overwhelm can be daily, even hourly but don’t worry; you’re not alone. Here’s a couple of ways you can get over these feelings, and carry on being your productive, happy self.

One step at a time

No matter what task you’re approaching, whether you’re tidying your house, cleaning your car or coming up with new business model, take things one step at a time. Break down your day into easily manageable blocks instead of trying to take on everything at once.

Get organised

If you’re simply waking up in the morning, getting in front of your computer and tapping away without a plan, it’s easy for other things to creep in and overtake your mind. Instead, make the first thing you do in the mornings sit down and make a plan.

This means you can be sure that you’re delegating enough time to each task and you’ll know that you’ll get everything done.

"Ever found yourself sitting at your desk with your head in your hands, thinking about everything but nothing at the same time? "

Delegate properly

As a soloist, it’s important that you manage your time well. You can’t get caught up doing menial tasks that could be completed by someone else.  This is especially important if you’re working with a team. However, what if you’re not working with a team and it’s just you?

Fortunately, there is still a multitude of options open to you. If you’re looking to improve your writing skills, you can do so using online resources such as State of Writing and Viawriting. Whatever service you’re in need of, don’t get stressed out, simply search online.

Prioritize your tasks

Hand in hand with the point above, when setting your tasks, make sure you spend time considering what tasks are most important. If you’ve got two tasks, one due today and the other tomorrow, make sure you plan which one you’re going to complete first! This can all be done at the beginning of your day and will help reduce the stress of pending deadlines.

Practice writing

Writing is renowned for its therapeutic properties, and it’s one of the best ways to reduce your stress and feelings of overwhelmed.

Leigha R. Banks, a psychology Australian writer, continues, “It doesn’t matter what form you write in. You could start a blog, keep a diary or even just write down notes, any form of writing is good. You don’t even have to write down anything in particular. Your thoughts, feelings, ideas, whatever you feel comfortable with.”

Know when to switch off

Whether you’ve got a tonne of work to complete, or you’re simply determined to get ahead, it’s easy to get carried away. One study shows that over 44% of people suffer from long-term stress; don’t let yourself get to this point by managing your time properly.

If you’ve been working for a couple of hours, remember when to switch off and have a break. Get outside, get some fresh air, socialise, read a book, do whatever you feel comfortable doing, but just need to make sure that you’re not working all the time.

 

 

 

Source: FLYINGSOLO 2018

This article by Brenda Berg is reproduced with the permission of Flying Solo - Australia's micro business community  Find out more and join over 100k others

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