How To Stop the Feeling of Overwhelm and Get Projects Finished

Overwhelm happens to all entrepreneurs. We have so many plates we are juggling on a daily basis- work, family, health. Within each of those areas, there are so many responsibilities, tasks, and projects. So, how do you beat overwhelm and get your projects finished?

The Monthly Master Project CheckList! (You can access it right now):

You sit at your desk with some time to focus on all the projects and tasks you should have accomplished last week that have been keeping you awake at night. As you begin tackling the tasks, you don’t know where to start first.

Overwhelm kicks in because you have so many tasks and responsibilities like marketing, follow up, sales, phone calls, emails along with the every day business activities. They all need your attention. You start feeling anxious, so you walk away from your desk and grab a latte hoping when you get back you will be able to get focused.

You come back to your desk and still feel overwhelmed. So surely if you check Facebook that is one thing you can check off your list (wink, wink). As you look up at the clock forty-five minutes have gone by and you have accomplished nothing.

Can you RELATE?

Why is it when we are laying in bed trying to sleep, we remember everything, yet we forget during the day? And when you do have the time to work on your business and accomplish these important tasks that have been keeping you up at night, they have all slipped from our mind.

I don’t know why…

I do know how to prevent this from happening again and get you the results you are looking for.

And that is what MATTERS!

Organize Your Tasks

As entrepreneurs, our mind goes in so many different directions and at any given time we have about 8 different things we need to accomplish. Then there are the little tasks that segment off of those tasks…

Our brain functions by compartmentalizing and that is what we need to do to stay organized and focused.

Easier said than done…right?

I discovered a simple, yet effective tool that helped my clients and myself stay organized. It is called the Monthly Master Project List. I took those eight areas we focus on in our business and created a template. You can download yours here:

This template is super simple to use. For example, this month I have quite a bit going on. I have hired a web development company to redesign my website and create a membership site. My 2016-2017 Perfect Planner is in editing mode for the new 2.0 version, and I am launching a new mastermind this month. Along with all the ongoing marketing and business activities. So, this is what my project areas on my Master Project List look like this month:

PROJECT AREAS:

Social Media

Business

New Website

Perfect Planner

Product Launch

Mastermind

Clients/Prospects

To Do List (This is a section I use if the task doesn’t fit into any of the categories I have for that month.)

As thoughts come to mind during the day of things that I need to accomplish, I simply write them under the appropriate project area. This helps to keep my thoughts organized on paper and out of my head. My tasks are assigned under the projects I am working on. I free up my mind and never worry about forgetting to do something.

Planning Your Time to Prevent Overwhelm

When you have an hour to get laser-focused on your business (something I like to call a “Power Hour”), you can pull out your Monthly Master Project List. Choose the tasks on the list that you want to accomplish. Then check them off as you complete each task.

Another way to use this monthly Master Project List is when you are planning your day. When you are planning your day in your planner you can use the monthly Master Project List to determine what 3-5 tasks you want to accomplish that day. (If you are using the Perfect Planner, it actually has the Monthly Master Project List in it for each month.)

Sense of Accomplishment

At the end of the month you can see everything you’ve accomplished, all in one place. Too many times I find that my clients feel they didn’t get anything accomplished that month. With the Monthly Master Project List you see all the tasks you completed and really feel a sense of accomplishment!

All those small steps that you take on a consistent basis are what leads to you reaching your goals. The items that you didn’t get to, you can roll to the next months project list.

Then, reward yourself for all the progress you are making!

Start. Right now.

Download your Master Project List:

Take 2 minutes and list your 8 project areas. Pick the three tasks from that list you want to focus on and accomplish today. If you stay focused on these tasks, you can forget about feeling overwhelmed.

So often we completely underestimate the power of accomplishing those small tasks, one after another, day by day. They get us that much closer to reaching our goals. Don’t underestimate the power of all those little accomplishments you are making as you check those tasks off your Master Project List.

Cheers to productive months, staying organized and out of overwhelm!

What do you do when you feel overwhelmed? How do you keep all your tasks organized? Share your thoughts and wisdom with us in the comment section.

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