New year and new opportunities. But why do I feel so overwhelmed?
My clients are sharing numerous successes achieved throughout last year. And optimism seems to be in the air for greater success and fulfillment in the new year ahead.
But there also seems to be another common theme; an undercurrent of feeling…overwhelmed.
You can only control what you can control.
If you believe this, read on.
Despite goals achieved. Despite the forward momentum. It seems to be intertwined with a bit of overload.
As entrepreneurs, we are certainly used to working hard and pushing beyond limits. But this brisk pace can also take its toll. And candidly, cannot last for an indefinite timeline.
Covid lingers. Finding good people remains a challenge. Employee turnover is always on your mind. Determining and handling your own workload capacity is always a balancing act…and the list goes on.
Included here are a few suggestions for your consideration. Candidly, you’ll probably push back a bit. But considering there is no quick fix, it is my hope that you review and take control of what you can control.
Take Inventory
We need to have some key information in order to make some progress and understand where headwinds occur in your day and week.
So, step-one is to take notes on your daily activities. Conducting a time study will provide data that point to what you actually are doing throughout the day as compared to what you have scheduled for your day. My advice…take notes for two weeks on your actual activities (not your scheduled activities) in half-hour increments.
Reflect
Once complete, review.
How much of what you captured looks like an ideal day or week for you?
What jumps out at you?
Where are those high value activities? And what percentage of your time are you focused there?
Implement
Now the hard part. You need to do something with the information you collected. Information without implementation yields no change in results.
I asked you earlier to review the line items of your time study that you believe are highest value. I’d like you also to review the line items that show up consistently that you would consider low value and/or distractions. We need to determine strategies and tactics to elevate the former while mitigating or eliminating the latter. Easier said than done; I understand that. But trust me. The most successful people you encounter have this understood and under control.
What if I challenged you to determine three things you need to complete today? And with that comes the reality that these three things are the only three things you will be able to complete. What would they be? Start there. It’s tough, but worth the investment in giving it a try.
In addition to identifying your top three activities for the day, choose one or two more strategies you will implement to help you alleviate the time crunch you are experiencing: a.k.a., what is your action plan for improving your priority management?
Many entrepreneurs find themselves believing that self-accountability is enough. They set out to achieve specific goals and hold themselves to their own high standards to achieve them. If this works for you, be sure to adhere to a high level of self-accountability required to implement the above. But I would argue, we need outside perspective to help stay the course. It’s a primary reason I do what I do. Candidly, my clients include accountability in the top three of the value I bring to them and their business. So, look around. Lay out your plan, and find the best resource for you in terms of accountability.
Your time is too valuable, and your wellbeing too important, to fight the current every day. So, take inventory, reflect and implement your plan to control what you can control.
Here's to a new year and new opportunities!
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