The Journey, No. 6: The Season of Feeling Overwhelmed

Welcome to The Journey

As a new entrepreneur, I’m learning a lot after spending >25 years in a corporate structure leading and developing others. It’s so exciting and terrifying.

I’d like to share what I’m learning as it relates to being vulnerable, curious and growth minded. It may be messy, but please enjoy for any of the tidbits that resonate with you. (check out our website for more information and blog content www.aspiretogrow.co)

This mini-blog theme is focused on feeling constantly overwhelmed. In this holiday season, we feel even more fatigued with tight timelines, increased work complexity and holiday planning.

Feeling Overwhelmed

It’s Not Just You

Let’s begin with saying, it’s not just you. It’s not just work. Our personal lives (especially as we approach the holidays) are getting busier with increased pressure of delivering on multiple competing priorities.

During this time of year, we often have huge commitments before the end of the year, critical milestones right around end of year and 2-3 large holidays and personal commitments (dinners, gatherings, parties, gifting, parenting, etc.) No wonder we are losing our minds and feeling exhausted.

The Workplace and World Have Become More Complex

In this very busy VUCA (volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous) world, our pace of work has not only increased, but the work and the problems are much more complex. More on how to think through VUCA opportunities: What VUCA Really Means for You (hbr.org).

Our response to this? We convince ourselves that we need to work harder and longer hours. We have negative self-talk. Frankly, we are exhausted. According to the HBR Article How To Deal With Constantly Feeling Overwhelmed by Rachel Zucker we begin to suffer from cognitive fatigue and overload.

Our brains can only handle SO much (even if we claim (or feel the need) to be super-s/heroes).

Ways to Combat Cognitive Fatigue

Prioritize

We know those project timelines and holiday parties won’t go away. How best can we address the overload? Zucker suggests the following:

Identify which thing(s) could be removed from the list that would reduce the most stress?
- Break work into smaller steps (can you delegate any of these steps?)
- Could you ask people to bring dishes to Thanksgiving?
- Could you outsource (purchase or order items) or skip things that may not be essential?
Set boundaries
- Saying “no” to unnecessary tasks at work (someone else may be able to do it)
- Schedule time (time block) your work schedule for focus time
- Schedule vacation days (please re-read this — SCHEDULE vacation days)
- Say no to special family requests (no one needs calligraphy written place cards) or better yet, delegate to someone else in your family
Challenge Your Perfectionism Tendencies
- Done and good is better than perfect and stressed
- Identify what level of “excellence” provides value to the end result (work or holiday dinner/gift/party, etc.)
Delegate or Outsource (see above)
- In a work setting, delegation may offer someone a development opportunity (see this as a positive!)
- Asking for help may actually show vulnerability that creates psychological safety for work and family
Challenge Your Assumptions
- What do you think will happen if “X” is not performed perfectly?
- What will happen if “X” does not happen as a part of the family gathering or social event?
- Will “X” holiday be ruined?

Above all, Celebrate Small Wins and Accomplishments

As you near the end of the year, and the big projects – plan for small win acknowledgements and celebrations. A quick thank you note – an acknowledgement at the top of a Zoom call, or just a quick “great job” to someone in your family (it can go a long way with our partners, too).

Every small win acknowledgement provides a small hit of dopamine (the reward chemical), that combined over time, may help overcome a little of that Cognitive Fatigue.

Source: The Amazing Power of “Small Wins” | Psychology Today — while these examples are personally related, try it at work with your teammates and colleagues. Notice the difference.

Honoring Indigenous Peoples During Thanksgiving

We Continue to Learn

As a family and as an entrepreneur, social issues are very important to me. I continue to educate myself and learn about those who are underrepresented in our workplace and communities (and in policies, traditions, etc.)

For Thanksgiving this year, we will be focusing on Honoring Indigenous Peoples in addition to honoring reasons for being thankful.

This Resource by Affinity Mentoring offers ways to incorporate learning opportunities into every day and at Thanksgiving.6 Ways to Honor Indigenous Peoples During Thanksgiving – Affinity Mentoring