Since it is such a prevalent issue for many of our clients, in our last post we started a series about our top tips for managing overwhelm in your life (whether it’s at work or outside of work). In our previous post we talked about using a strategy called the “Daily Three”. If you haven’t read about this strategy – go back and take a read. But for those of you ready to move forward into our next strategy, we’re going to discuss how to extinguish energy drainers.

First, it will be helpful to define the energy drainers in your life. These are things that deplete you and cause a noticeable difference in your mindset when you encounter them. Take some time to create a list of all the things in your life which are energy drainers for you. Is there a coworker in your office, a family member, or a friend that just zaps the energy from you? Or maybe there are certain tasks that bog you down like checking endless numbers of emails? Are you exhausted looking at your disorganized space or clutter? Are you surrounded by distractions or multitasking? Have you been putting off unfinished business that just needs to be resolved? Do you find yourself taking things personally and getting wrapped up in your head? Or maybe your energy is all going towards perfectionistic tendencies? Don’t edit your list – just write it all down. And be honest. Maybe you love and adore that friend who is an energy drainer. That’s ok! This is a list of things that deplete your energy, not things that you hate!

Our goal is now to help remove some of those energy drainers to help you get through this overwhelm. We’re not banishing them forever, just putting out the fire for the moment so you can get back to balance. Let’s get started!

Begin by eliminating anything you can easily say “no” to now. Can you cancel lunch with that friend? Can emails wait until tomorrow? Can you find a quiet space to work or locate some noise cancelling headphones? Once you’ve eliminated these items, mark them off of your list.

What should be left behind are those items that are a bit more complicated to navigate. For example, is your office a cluttered mess? Or maybe you have so much laundry to catch up on you’re not sure how you’ll ever accomplish it? Are you spending so much time multitasking that you never seem to fully accomplish anything? Or do you have some unfinished projects that are just weighing you down? It’s time to make a plan.

Begin by categorizing these items if you can. Sometimes it helps to see how things are related. Many of our clients put them into five categories: relationships, work, home, finances, and well-being. You may find it helpful to further break these categories down depending on your overwhelm experience. For example, if your overwhelm is happening only at work (a rare occurrence as most overwhelm hits all parts of our lives) you may create categories based upon your work environment such as co-workers, projects, environment, organization, etc. Categorizing gives order and control to the situation – so categorize your energy drainers in any way that is meaningful to you.

Next, create a plan. What you can do to gain control over some of these energy drainers? Here are a few suggestions:

Alert family, friends, or co-workers to your feeling of overwhelm. Explain that you need time alone to focus so you can come out of these feelings smoothly. Ask for support in your dedication to this effort and understanding in your need to step away temporarily.
Set boundaries. Rather than stress over your finances, set clear parameters and stick to them. For example, tell your co-workers that you’ll go out to lunch with them on Fridays, but that you can’t go every day.
Set a timer for 30 minutes and devote uninterrupted time to organizing your space. While taking time away from your tasks may seem counterintuitive, you’ll likely work much more effectively in a tidier environment.
Rather than multitasking on competing projects, time block your schedule. Set aside dedicated periods of time to tackle each task. During that time, you must focus on only the task you are scheduled to work on. No exceptions!
Recognize self-defeating thoughts such as concerns about perfectionism. One of the best ways to do this is to write those thoughts down as they occur (“Sally’s report is always flawless, so I need to be sure mine is perfect too.”). Cross them out and replace them with less extreme thoughts (“Sally writes great reports. I do too. Reports are important, but no one really cares if they are perfect.”).

Once you have decided how you’ll address each energy drainer on your list – it’s time to put it into action. Take one item at a time and progress through your plan until your energy has returned to equilibrium. Certainly you won’t be able to eliminate every energy drainer. That’s not the goal! The goal is to simply remove enough of them that you can regain your momentum and calm that overwhelm monster that is vying for your attention. Say goodbye to overwhelm, and remember this technique for the next time it rears its ugly head.

Now is the time in the personal strategic planning process to take all the individual pieces and begin to put them together. Schedule some time to review your mission statement, your values, and your assessment results. Evaluate those items. What are your strengths? Where can you grow and improve? What would you like to change? What would you like to accomplish? What areas of your life need the most attention (i.e., finances, friends/family, intimate relationships, career, health, social/fun, personal development, home/work environment)? Be sure not to limit yourself as you answer these questions. Write your thoughts down in your notebook. Spend as much time as you need to flesh out each of these areas. We'll pare these ideas down soon enough, but you want to start by tapping into your ambition and creativity. There's no bad idea here.

Take your time and don't rush yourself. You may want to pick this task up multiple times over the course of a week. Try looking at it in the morning. Again in another afternoon. Try again in the evening and before you go to sleep. Give yourself as many opportunities to change your perspective and mood as possible. Give yourself the freedom to dream and stretch outside of your comfort zone. Work on it until you have exhausted yourself.

Now, go back through your notebook. Ask yourself the following questions:

Which ideas are in line with my mission statement? (Highlight those ideas in your notebook!)
Which of these are in conflict with the key values I identified? (Cross these ideas out!)
Which of these utilize strengths that I have? (Underline these ideas!)
Which ideas do you feel excited about pursuing? (Star those ideas!)

You may find that there are certain ideas that generate energy in you. For instance, you might be interested in obtaining additional schooling or training. Just thinking about learning something new may ignite something in you. You find yourself imagining the fun you'll have expanding your knowledge base. You might be catching yourself browsing programs online or exploring ways you'll be able to incorporate this new skill in your work. This is your energy building. It's an energizer.

Other ideas may have the opposite effect. For instance, you may recognize that you've outgrown your existing office space. You need to move, but the idea of moving just overwhelms you. The thought of finding another place, packing everything up, changing your address with all of your clients, etc. makes you want to run away - or at least push it to the back of the list. This idea is an energy drainer.

Evaluate your ideas in terms of how they impact your energy. This doesn't mean that you can't add an item to your plan that is an energy drainer - it just means that you'll have to figure out how to make that a task you will actually accomplish. For some clients, that means they will put that item at the top of their priority list. For others, it means they will need to build a good reward in it for them or find a way to reframe the idea so it is more appealing.

Now that you've studied your ideas through all of these different lenses, it's time to pick your priorities. What do you want to accomplish this year? Make a list. Ensure that whatever you put on your list is able to be accomplished within this year. If it's on your list, it should fit with your values and your mission statement. Pick things that are important to you. Things you are motivated to accomplish. Things that will give you joy. When you've finished this list, review your list as a whole. Could you accomplish all of this in a year? If not, pare it down a bit. You may need to only tackle parts of a task. Or you may want to wait and put something on your list for the following year. Try to be as specific and detailed as you can be in your list. Make it very clear what you want to accomplish. We'll be using this list to write your strategic plan.

You're only two steps away! And the great news is that the hard work is already done. Now you just have to organize the information and get to work on it. Reward yourself for being more than halfway through the personal strategic planning process. The investment you are putting into yourself is priceless.

This post is the fourth in a series of posts about personal strategic plans.

Ashley Bauman, M.S., M.B.A., B.C.C. is the president of Bauman Consulting Group in Loveland, Ohio. She provides training, consulting, and coaching to criminal justice and social service professionals.