3 tips to turn it around
1. Radical Accountability:
What commitments have you chosen right now that realistically are not in line with what this season of life requires from you and your available energy. Maybe don’t renovate your house when you have a newborn. Maybe don’t start a new social committee when you have just started a new job. Maybe it’s saying yes to too many nights out a week or doubling down on your volunteering when you are recovering from burnout.
Whatever this brings to mind for you - what do you need to say no to right now so that you can say yes to YOU?
2. Capital S Simplicity:
Oftentimes when we are overwhelmed we enter a supercharged (but unproductive) frazzle of trying to tackle everything at once OR freeze and get nothing done. Simplify. Pick one SMALL thing you can do and just start. Sweep the floor, put the laundry away, take the garbage out. This is all about not using our brain power glitching out on small things that don’t move the needle in our life (i.e. give measurable results). This is also about building momentum and confidence. Doing one small thing from start to finish will give you energy whereas trying to choose the perfect action and ending up doing nothing at all will drain you - big time.
Less thinking and buzzing, more grounded doing.
Prepare yourself for the next time this happens. Write down 3 things that can be your “go-to” when you are glitching and need to get back on track with a fast win. Here, I’ll even give you mine: dishes, sweep the floor, walk the dog.
3. Energy Triage
Pattern interruption. When you get in a physical or mental rut you can either redirect (like step 2), or give yourself a “jolt” out of the rut and back onto level ground. When you are overwhelmed sometimes the best thing to do is just call it a day and go MEGA easy on yourself. Be the bouncer at the door of your energy and just say no to everything that is non-essential for your day. This is great when you are depleted and just really need to rest and nourish yourself on a deep level. Option 2 - Completely switch gears. Likely this will involve movement to physically shake out the glitchy energy. You might still have to re-prioritize your day (also - take a look at your to-do list for the day. Maybe you are glitching out because you’ve simply given yourself far too much to do) but with this option you really turn your day around rather than just resting up and letting it pass. You will know which option is best for you. And if you don’t, pick the one you want to do the least and try it then ask yourself if it was what you needed. Try both in different scenarios and you will get a sense of what you need when.
What does your body need? Shower to help you let go, shake it out to get the energy flowing, put the phone away for a day. Cancel your plans and go to bed.
ps.
I put together a guide for us (one that I refer back to myself from time to time) called Breakup With Stress. It’s all about real simple easy things you can do right now (if you are ready to take a bit of a hard look in the mirror) to move the needle from stressed to refreshed.
