Do you ever get that overwhelming feeling when you look at your To Do List, whether from life or business, and it goes down the piece of paper and onto the next. Even when you have a shorter To Do list but it is punctuated with a few very large tasks, it can provoke a feeling of panic. How can I get all this done? There has been definitely been moments this week that these feelings have arisen for me!
Soul Plan Energies and To Do Lists
There are those of us with the sensitive soul plan energies that can be more affected by a long list of things to achieve. And then there are those with the 6-6 soul plan energy, the ones that end up doing a bit of this task, then a bit of that and over to that one, the end result is lots of started stuff and not so much of the finished. Yep, I have one these too in my mix. The resulting feelings have often been frustration alongside overwhelm.
Running a business and a family life can means my list gets a chaotic mix. I am sharing my way of dealing with this, though I have to keep reminding myself of the technique when more and more tasks pile in every day.
The Master To Do List
I create a Master To Do List, this needs to be in something that I can close. Despite the digital age, I love nothing better than a notepad for you this may be a digital list as long as it is separate closeable and separate from the next part of this.
The Day List
Each morning (or the night if I really want to be on top of things), I take 3 items from the Master List (then close it). These 3 items are then transferred to my Day List. There is a fourth item that also goes on to the list which I will come to shortly.
Today you only focus on those 3 tasks working to complete them..
(If one it a very big task then break it down into smaller manageable chunks and keep one or two parts on your day list transfer other parts back to Master List).
The Soul Care in your To Do List
If you are wondering what that fourth item on the list is then it is my celebration/soul care item. This is the thing I use to celebrate my accomplishment if I complete all 3 tasks. This will be something I really enjoy. I don't go back to the Master List and add more things to my Day List, I do soul care fun thing first. By having it on the list to tick off it stops the temptation to go back to the Master List. Soul care for me can be just sitting in the garden and enjoying the sunshine, going for a walk or taking a long bath with scented candles.
More Focus, Less Resistance
Using this method for me means I become more focused, achieve more but you will also build up less resistance and procrastination. For me, if I an not being overwhelmed and I make time to enjoy what I have achieved with something I love to do!
After one of my days from overwhelm and success days, I took a walk and kicked off my shoes for a bit of barefoot walking in slightly damp grass and sunshine.
I hope you find this technique helpful if you are experiencing To Do List overwhelm!