Overwhelmed with to-do

When the ratio of to-do and done seems to be weighted in favour of to-do… what do you do? 

Many people take the overwhelm path. It’s all too much. Argh! 

But here are 5 steps that might help, thanks to Art Markman’s article in Fast Company. 

And if you don’t have time - or energy - to read it, I made you a picture of 5 steps. 

Do them, one by one. 

The most important person to influence

Much is written about influence: how to use it, who is impacted by it and how to get more of it. 

Of all the people you focus on influencing, do you put effort into influencing yourself? 

Do you know what to do to change your state, how you’re feeling, or what you’re doing? 

Rather than just accepting things for how they are or ‘going with the flow’, a more deliberate practice is to be able to influence yourself. 

To shift and change how you think and respond to things. 

For example, if you have times when you’re anxious or overwhelmed, what do you do? Do you have a go-to list of remedies and reliefs? 

Sniff an orange. 

No, that’s not a typo. It’s one of the suggestions in this neat list of 28 ‘little’ things to do in times of anxiety. 

There are some we might have heard of before like writing things down, exercising or being grateful, but there are some wonderful new tips too 

Bookmark it if it’s something you - or someone you love, live or work with might benefit from. 

It could help you be more influential. 

Too much information

The answer isn’t to communicate less. It’s to adopt some better practices. 

This article from the World Economic Forum ties nicely to some of the thinking in my book ‘Argh! Too much information, not enough brain’. 

There’s plenty of information to be had. There’s so much that it even has a name : infodemic. 

And synthesising or reducing information all the time isn’t the answer either. Abbreviated and reduced summaries have caused and created more information issues for us. 

We can’t take it all in, all the time. 

How might we think and work with information in better ways? 

➡️ And have you got your copy of ‘Argh!’ yet? It’s getting some great reviews from people who’ve bought it and put the practices to work to outsmart their overwhelm. Ebook and paperback are out now. Audio book is out there too …

I’ll read it for you

I’ve just finished the audio book recording for my new book Argh! Too much information, not enough brain: A practical guide to outsmarting overwhelm’. 

Thanks to Maryanne and Ryan at SquareSound we were able to record over two half day sessions. 

I love reading my own books, being the narrator. 

After working in radio for some years, recording commercial voiceovers for ad agencies and volunteering for Vision Australia as a newsreader, the sight of a booth and a microphone is a familiar one. 

When you put the headphones on, think of someone who is listening to the book and then read it to them ... it’s a great project to complete. 

Next I’ll record a session of ‘pick ups’ to fix any blips or errors after the proof readers have listened. 

And then it will be out into the world to places like Audible where you can download it and start listening. 

Are you an audio book fan? After I’d recorded ‘ish’, my book two years ago, people said they listened in the car, on the bus, at the gym, walking the dog, house cleaning, cycling, sleeping, on road trips and while others in the house were watching tv they weren’t interested in. 

What about you? Would you like me to read the book to you? 

Searching, switching and cycling

It seems we’ve got a time-sucking app problem as we search, switch and cycle through apps looking for the information we need. 

And we lose up to an hour a day doing it!

Remote tools are given the blame here, as we have been forced into ‘uncontrolled adoption’ of apps to help us work better together across online platforms. 

Read more in this article in TechRepublic by Owen Hughes.  

It’s the switching that’s the main problem. From here ... to there.. looking, can’t find it, back there, looking again, interrupted, read something else, start again, ‘now where was I up to?’

And hybrid working environments are exaggerating the issue further. 

What is the impact of this loss of attention? 
Reduced productivity and efficiency. 
Less creativity. 
Poorer problem solving. 
Increased stress. Argh!

What about you? Do you switch, search and cycle through, clicking here and there trying to remember what you’re looking for and where you last looked at it? 

I know I do. 

Calm, focused attention can be difficult to find when you’re on a time pressure deadline and aren’t sure where the information is that you’re searching for. 

It’s another reason why we need to be better at managing our attention, maintaining focus and dealing with information overload. 

These are all topics I cover in my latest book ‘Argh! Too much information, not enough brain: A practical guide to outsmarting overwhelm.’

Have you got a copy yet? Even if you’re too busy to read it right now, (I get it, I do) put it onto your list to make progress towards reading it over the next 90 days.