Too much to do? Try doing it the other way round.

This blog post started life as an episode of my podcast, Unfrazzle. If you prefer, you can listen to that here.

When I was getting ready to record an episode of the Brand Therapy Podcast with Phil and Lauren, I had no idea what was about to unfold.

There I was with my notes, ready to talk about my approach to compassionate, sustainable productivity, ready to give the listeners a new, empowering way of thinking about planning and getting stuff done…

…but what actually happened was WAY more powerful!

It turned out that Lauren and Phil were both drowning in a sea of overwhelm. They had way too much to do, and were open and honest enough to share their struggles with me. Lauren in particular had found herself in a really difficult situation, fighting to catch up after a period of illness during what was already a busy time.

Here’s what she said:

“I was already really overwhelmed and then I was the sickest I’ve ever been in my entire life, which set me back even further.

And now I come back and I feel like 100,000 people are asking me for things and need help.

And there’s only one of me who can actually do the tasks they need help with.

And there’s only 24 hours in a day.

It’s a very uncomfortable position to be in. I’m feeling incredibly overwhelmed.”

The fact that they were drowning when we spoke, meant that instead of talking in hypotheticals, I got to apply my knowledge and expertise to what was actually going on in their world during the podcast recording. (You can listen to the full episode here.)

But there was one particular piece of advice that really hit home for Lauren, so I’d love to share it with you too.

She told me that her way of navigating her overwhelm is to look at her list of 72 things, figure out what’s most important and start there.

Makes sense, right?

Absolutely! And I suggested it can also be helpful to view it the other way round:

To look at what’s least important.

That suggestion blew Lauren’s mind because it shifts the focus from what still needs to be done, to what you can let go of.

It’s all about permission to put things down. To let go of anything that’s no longer relevant, no longer in alignment with the direction you’re heading in, or no longer important enough to warrant your attention right now.

It’s about picking up that list of 72 things and looking for tasks you might outsource, tasks you might ask for help with, tasks you might put safely in a ‘not now’ holding zone.

When you do that, the sense of relief is palpable as you set down a few of the plates you’re spinning.

Lightening the load – even just a little bit – can help things feel more manageable so that when you return to the most important thing on your list, you’re better able to focus.

Clever, eh?

Give it a go next time you’re drowning in too much to do and see what a difference it makes.