Key Takeaways:

• “Feeling busy” and “having too much going on” are ways of organizing your life that may not be working for you.

• When you feel overwhelmed, look beyond the tangible tasks in front of you and evaluate if there are other reasons you are keeping yourself busy.

If you have ever felt like you’re doing too much, you’ve got too much going on, or there just isn’t enough time in the day to complete all of the tasks on your to do list, then this blog post is for you.

Recently, someone told me they feel that they need to hire a personal assistant. It made me wonder, what are the realistic demands of their life and what choices are they making where they end up feeling so overwhelmed?

Human beings are capable of a lot, but our capacity has limits. We all have to make choices about what is most important and a priority, and making those choices involves a sense of loss. The feeling of FOMO can be real – when we make decisions, we necessarily foreclose on some options. This can be a difficult choice to face. 

When you are feeling overwhelmed, attempt to look beyond the practical tasks in front of you, and evaluate if there is some deeper reason why you are so busy. What is it you are trying to accomplish? Is this busyness a way of keeping your mind off something? A way to deal with sadness or pain? A difficulty in asking for help? A struggle asserting your needs and saying no? Of course real situations do exist where you can be overwhelmed, but always try to keep in mind what your options are.

Asking deep questions of yourself can be aided by working with the right therapist. Your therapist should be someone who makes the path to these questions seem approachable and supported. Your therapist should be helping you understand your ultimate goals and how to pursue them. Your therapist should be someone who helps you think about your decisions, but never forces you to do anything; your life belongs to you and the choices you make are yours.

And importantly, while a therapist is not a personal assistant, they may be a useful asset to have while navigating how you make decisions and decide where you spend your precious time.