For me, this is a super busy week. In addition to a huge client event, I invited my father to visit me so he could experience that event. I mean, dumb, right?
But something really weird happened: My husband noted that with the exception of one minor crack up, I’m pretty calm. And let’s be honest, if I didn’t have at least one crack up, I’d be questioning how much I care right now.
The truth is that I care a lot. I care about doing a great job for my client. And I care about my father seeing me happy and healthy while living in a clean house. All of this caring equals a lot of balls in the air right now. So how am I not overwhelmed?
Lists
Is there anything better than making a list of everything you have to do? I can assure you there is not. Putting that first list together gives you a great reality check, because if you’re anything like me, there are going to be too many things on that list with a too tight timeline.
I then divide that list up into smaller lists. There are the must-do/urgents, should dos and wish lists. And then you take those lists and figure out if you really have to do it all or if there is someone else that can do some of these jobs. Yes, you might do it better, but you can’t if you don’t actually do it.
For getting our house in shape, I made the list and put it right on our fridge where my husband could happily say I was neurotic. But he right away got to work on his jobs, and he could clarify to me what actually needed to be done (we were divided on the subject of snacks).
If you’re having trouble getting your social media list categorized, have a fresh set of eyes. Those eyes could be the difference between running around like a chicken with its head cut off or having a clean house.
Eat and Drink
This is something I struggle hard with. I never eat enough when I’m in crunch time and let’s just say hangry never looks good on anyone. You can’t think straight and your work will suffer.
Put alerts in your phone to remind yourself to have lunch, since that will almost always be the meal that gets skipped. And then add some alerts to make sure you’re drinking your water.
A social media manager that eats and drinks is a social media that can tackle any problem.
Ask for Help
You are one person. It’s okay if you are having trouble handling a rather overwhelming time. Reach out to others to back you up. Be honest about what is going wrong and how someone else might be able to jump in. It will save you so much heart ache in the end.
With that said, I’d like to thank Amazon Prime Now for taking care of my store runs. That freed me up to do so many other things.
Let Go of Plan A… B… And C
You know that list we started with? It’s gonna change. Your strategy is going to need tweaking. You just can’t plan for everything.
If you stay in the head space where YOU HAVE TO DO PLAN A. You are going to waste a lot of emotional effort that you will need for something else. And to be honest, hold onto the joy of letting go because you’ll probably have to do it more than once.
So yes, I’d love to have mums on my porch right now and some fresh flowers making my house look so sweet. But you know what? My dad would probably say, “Who are you and what did you do with my daughter?” So I can let go of that plan.
Remember This is Temporary
Knowing there is a time limit to the crazy helps me put my head down and grind out work. I repeat, “I’m just working for Monday morning. Monday morning is going to be glorious.” (I might be the first person that’s ever said that.)
To help reinforce this, plan something that will make you feel awesome when the crazy ends. Maybe a facial, a massage or just a nice long soak in the tub.
On the other hand, if the crazy isn’t temporary and you are perpetually running on urgent, then something fundamental is wrong. Look at your current processes, streamline and figure out what is broken. You cannot always be on red alert, so the faster you can fix it, the better you’ll be at your job.
What do you do when social media is overwhelming for you?
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