My 5 tried & true steps on how to manage overwhelm as a creative business owner
Overwhelm comes easy to us small business owners. We have to-do lists coming out the wazoo, and then there is that looming unwritten list of the things we’ve been avoiding doing.
When it comes to overwhelm, I use these same steps time and time again for myself and my clients.
My 5 Steps on How to Manage Overwhelm
When everything seems like too much:
Freewrite. Set a timer for 10-15 minutes. Write down every single task or idea that is flying around in your head. Don’t judge them or try to plan things out. Just write down all the things. You will come back and organize this later.
Now take a 5-minute break. Go clear your head.
Review your list. Circle or highlight the most important tasks, ideas, or tasks that have dependencies. Connect or group like tasks around these important ones. I like to put these on post-it notes so you can move things around. This step is about organizing your list of things - we are not planning yet.
Take a step back. Look at the groupings of things you have organized. Is there anything you’ve missed?
Set priorities. Once you have your tasks grouped, start prioritizing what comes first. Which tasks or ideas are directly related to your current goals? Are there any ideas that can be set aside for now?
Start with 1 thing. I know you have a list of tasks and priorities now, but if you look at that list as a whole, it can put you right back into that overwhelmed place. So decide what is the 1 thing you need to do to get started. And after that, what is the 1 thing, and so on.
I shared this image on Instagram earlier this year, and I think it applies here. There are 50 million ideas or things in your head, but if you focus on one thing, overwhelm becomes much easier to manage.
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