5 Practical ways to overcome overwhelm at work and achieve goals.

Introduction

The demanding nature of today’s work environment wreaks havoc on your productivity and well-being. I have been there! 

The pressure of high workloads, unclear expectations, and unrealistic deadlines, can even make the most dedicated employees feel like they are spiraling into the black hole of overwhelm. 

The pervasive feeling of falling behind, no matter how hard you try, freezes your ability to perform effectively. It makes every day feel like an uphill battle. 

Regaining control over your workload isn’t a quick fix; It’s a practice that takes time and effort to manage the stress that comes with it. 

In this article, we'll explore both the obvious and subtle signs of feeling overwhelmed at work. You will also discover five effective and actionable strategies to conquer overwhelm and reignite your productivity.   

Signs of being overwhelmed at work

While sometimes you can feel the overwhelmness of things spiraling out of control, not all the time can you identify the signs of struggling. Here are some key signs to watch out for.  

• Lacking the drive and motivation to work on tasks. 
• Feeling constant nervousness about looming deadlines, meetings, and unexpected tasks.
• Stretching work hours to catch up on the work.
• Constantly in your thoughts about work. 
• Feeling exhausted even before coming to work.
• Having a hard time surviving the day.
• Getting distracted easily and finding difficulty concentrating. 
• Putting off or avoiding tasks altogether.
• Feeling drained out all the time. 
• Getting frustrated easily or snapping at colleagues over small issues.
• Feeling vulnerable emotionally, physically, and mentally. 
• Experiencing a sense of hopelessness all the time. 
• Noticing frequent errors, degraded quality, and inaccuracy in your work performance. 

And the list goes on and on. 

If you resonate with any of the enlisted feelings, do not ignore them. It’s high time you acknowledge your emotions and address them to cope with tougher times.  

5 ways to keep a clear head and stay focussed at work

Whatever is causing you overwhelmedness, brushing them off under the rug isn’t the solution. To row against the current, you need to make continuous effort and determination to move forward.  

Here are the tips to reclaim your balance and maintain 24/7 focus to thrive in your professional environment.

1. Self reciprocate

Sit with yourself and ask yourself - “What is it that is making me feel swamped at the office?”

On reflection, you may come up with multiple reasons as a response- 

• “I don’t have enough time for work.”
• “My plate is overloaded with plenty of tasks.”
• “I need to say ‘Yes’ every time, otherwise I’ll be considered uncooperative”
• "My manager doesn’t appreciate me, probably I don’t perform up to the expectation."
• "I don’t get enough support from my team."
• "I am unable to concentrate, due to constant meetings and emails."

The practice is to uncover the underlying thoughts that ignite your anxious feelings. 

There is a reason behind every thought - whether valid or not - that forces you to behave and feel in a certain manner. Identifying the root cause is crucial to address the issue effectively.

2. Brain dump

Write everything down. Don’t keep anything for your brain to remember. Get all your thoughts and ideas out of your head. Let them flow freely. Jot them down - on paper or digitally - your choice. 

When you do this, you save yourself from feeling anxious due to information overload. Something that might be bogging down your head, might not be as huge as you perceive it. It helps you declutter your mind and presents a structured framework for your brain to process information. 

The practice shifts your mindset from “I’ll never be able to manage this” to “I can get it done one by one”

Tools like ProofHub come with comprehensive features such as note-taking, bookmarks, and stickies, which help you organize all your thoughts, important tasks, and reminders in one place for a glance.

3. Learn to prioritize 

No matter the intimidating number of tasks on your to-do list, prioritization is key to managing them effectively. It ensures you are tackling the most important tasks firsthand. 

According to Reclaimai’s setting priorities report, a whopping 98.2% of 989 professionals experience trouble prioritizing tasks. 

When trying to juggle dozens of tasks together, categorize tasks based on urgency and importance. Evaluate the ones deserving your utmost attention. You can even break down the workload by fragmenting larger, complex tasks into smaller, manageable sub-tasks.

Some prioritization methods to take help from are: 

• Eisenhower Matrix (categorize tasks into four quadrants based on urgency and importance)
• ABCDE method (assign letters A through E to tasks based on priority)
• Pareto principle (focus on the 20% of tasks with 80% impact)
• Most important task (MIT) method (Perform the single most important task each day )
• Eat the frog (tackle the most challenging or unpleasant task first)

ProofHub allows you to nail the prioritization game with its intuitive task management system. For example, it allows you to set deadlines, dependencies, and labels to categorize and organize tasks. You can utilize these features to prioritize effectively and get the most important tasks completed first. 

Learn the practical ways to prioritize tasks at the workplace and get more done in less time 

4. Do not multitask

You may feel tempted to divide your focus between multiple tasks, hoping to do more in less time. The practice is a total flop.  

Juggling, multitasking, and other forms of “attention shifting” are highly inefficient. Simply, the brain works much faster and more accurately when attention is focused, for some time, on one thing at a time. – Harvard Business Review

Regardless of how small a task may seem, don’t go bouncing between the tasks. Instead, do one task at a time. Check it off and then jump on to the next. 

For example, if you are currently creating a marketing campaign for your business, and an email notification flashes. Don’t jump in to revert, unless extremely important. Set distraction-free time blocks for focused work. 

5. Take control of your time

“Either you run the day or the day runs you.” – Jim Rohn

Nobody is privileged enough to get more than 24 hours a day. We all get the same deal. Then why do some people crush up their schedule, while others barely keep up? The answer, I believe, is that they lack effective time management skills.  

The skill is necessary to combat overwhelm. How can you do that? 

Simple, when starting a task, set yourself a self-imposed deadline. Allocate specific time slots or predetermined time for dedicated tasks, and push everything else aside for later attention. 

Schedule deadlines for tasks within ProofHub's calendar and set reminders to ensure you stay on top of your workload.

When you have a looming deadline over your head, you tend to focus intently on tasks and introduce a sense of control in you. You can even use a timer to track your time spent on tasks for optimal efficiency.

Wrapping up

Remember, the feeling of overwhelmness isn’t vague. You should acknowledge your work situation and never take it for granted.  Give yourself some grace. Take time to re-energize, and emerge stronger than ever. 

Organize your workflow, and ultimately regain a sense of control over your work and reduce feelings of overwhelm with ProofHub. Try FREE now.