Do you ever feel like everything is a just mess? Do you feel that things are all over the place in terms of your tasks? Do you have so much to do in so many different areas or categories of life and business, but you can’t seem to get organized.? This post is going to be all about why you may be feeling this way and the things I’m doing to get organized and productive when I have things to do that fall under multiple categories.
If you’re feeling like everything is a mess, it’s likely for one of these reasons:
- Focused on doing a lot rather than doing what matters: This was a big issue for me, and honestly, sometimes I still struggle with it. It is really easy to look at your to-do list, see a bunch of things you don’t want to do, and end up latching on to some low priority task. The task may feel more manageable, engaging, or maybe even fun. This can look like spending an excessive amount of time on something that you can easily delegate. It can also look like focusing on “perfecting” something by tweaking it a ton of times instead of getting it done and moving on to the next thing. The problem with this is that often higher priority tasks go undone, leaving us to feel unproductive and guilty that we spent so much time doing the other things. This is when you end up wondering how you spent so much time being busy but still nothing is done.
- You can’t decide when to do things: If you’re not careful, you can end up doing things at inappropriate or inefficient times simply because these things are important and need to get done. If you find yourself taking on tasks whenever you can, rather than being intentional about your prioritization, this could be a problem for you. Choosing optimal times to get things done can be what you need to really get organized and stop feeling like your life is a mess.
- A disorganized or lack of a task management system: To-do lists work for some, but for others they are a dumping ground of everything we feel like we need to do. Things come up, and we dump them on the list. The problem with having a disorganized task management system is that your tasks are not categorized, and often it becomes difficult to keep track of why you expect yourself to do something in the first place.
- Not tracking your progress: Sometimes we are doing a job of getting some things done, but we are not keeping track of what those things are and the overall progress we are making toward our goals. Not being able to clearly see how far we’ve come or what is left to do in order to make our goals will leave us feeling like we have no control over our results and that overall, everything is a mess.
Here are some things that I’m doing (and that you can to) to combat these issues that are causing things to feel like a disorganized mess:
- Getting clear on my goals and developing a clear system to track my progress: For me this looks like identifying the action steps, tasks and milestones necessary to see a result down the line. It also involves focusing on creating goals that are more about what is required of me rather than what outcomes I want. This allows me to develop systems to monitor my progress and keeping track of what I’m doing rather than monitoring metrics that are out of my control. Some goals only focus on an outcome rather than an action plan to get you there. These goals can be a bit more discouraging when you are not reaching the outcome fast enough. Progress can feel slow, especially when you don’t have a good system to track it or when your system is focused on results rather than what you are actually doing.
- Letting go of unnecessary tasks: This requires me to prioritize what actually needs to be done and what needs to be done by me. It may be challenging to get used to this shift but, it is necessary to getting organized and being productive in the right areas. I’m learning to let go of things I’m simply not the best at or that I just don’t need to be doing. For example, I was trying to set up my website and I ran into a tech issue. Usually, I would spend hours trying to watch YouTube videos and Googling my life away until I learned how to fix the issue myself. I got started with this process, then had a conversation with my dad (Hi dad!) and he told me it would be way more efficient to outsource this. That’s what I did and in no time the issue was fixed, and I got to move on with my life, stress-free. This is important, especially when you are just starting out in business. There are so many things that are more important for you to do than obsessing over minor details or issues, especially when you are working a job or have a family to care for. Time is limited, and letting go of things you just don’t need to be doing is crucial to getting over that feeling that everything is a mess. Ask yourself if you even need to be worried about getting something done in the first place.
- Focusing on tasks that have the highest impact: In addition to letting go of unnecessary things, you want to double down on things that will make the most of your time. These are the action items that make the biggest contribution to your results. With fitness, it will look like managing your diet. With business, it will look like focusing on the things that bring money in or your “revenue generating activities”. Whatever those things are for your goals, you will want to identify them early on so that you can spend time being as effective as possible. This can be done by getting clear on the goal and what it means to be making progress like we talked about in step one.
- Prioritizing tasks based on my energy levels: To get productive I have to get real and so do you. Are you putting unnecessary pressure on yourself to do things at inappropriate times or when you just don’t have the energy for it? For example, if you are trying to write a book, are you expecting yourself to get a chapter done when you are exhausted and should be getting ready for bed? This kind of habit could be what is stifling your productivity and leaving you feeling like your life is a mess. Why expect yourself to do things when you know it’s not a good time for it? This is not to say you shouldn’t use the time you have, but you can rearrange the tasks you have scheduled, based on the energy levels that are required to complete those tasks.
I hope these tips help you get in control of your tasks so you can start to see progress in multiple areas of your personal and professional lives. Remember, it’s not just about being busy, but it is about being effective with your time and task management so you can get organized and feel good about your progress.
To conquering the “mess” in our lives,
Adina
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