There are days I wake up, look at my to do list, and dive right in. And then there are days, like today, that I look at my to do list and walk over to make another coffee and suddenly feel inspired to organize my collection of mugs. Am I procrastinating? Or am I overwhelmed?
Yes.
This is a sign of a few things:
- An overloaded to do list
- Not enough resources to complete the list (time, energy, dopamine, serotonin, coffee, etc.)
- As a person that menstruates, it could also be whatever phase I’m in
What’s a witch to do?
Why, grab our magic wand, of course!
A system I have been playing with the last few days is something I am calling WAND. (I love a witchy acronym, okay?)
It’s a way of choosing a task, even when my priority task list is still overwhelming. As I juggle simultaneous active client projects, run an online membership, chauffeur my oldest kid around to their summer activities, chase a toddler that enjoys trying to disprove the existence of gravity, maintain a home, family, and relationships, oh and work on new projects and offerings in the background while also working to streamline, maintain, and improve my business… I get overwhelmed by my list.
Often.
So I’m starting to look at my list and ask myself the following questions:
- What do I want to do? (W)
- What is causing me anxiety? (A)
- What can I neglect a little longer? (N)
- What needs to be delegated? (D)
Let’s break this down a bit:
What do I want to do? These are the tasks that are a joy to do, not just complete. These kind of tasks I either use to jumpstart my day for a quick dopamine hit, or use as a reward system. I can work on my website once I’ve finished a task for a client’s website.
What is causing me anxiety? These are the tasks that are actively building up anxiety for either not being done or having to do them. Things like doing the dishes or sending an email I really don’t want to have to send. I know I’ll feel amazing once it’s done, but the fact that it’s there on my list gives me anxiety so I avoid it. Which gives me anxiety. I’ll tackle these items in between my “want” tasks as a kind of task sandwich.
What can I neglect a little longer? These are the tasks that I can let go until I can’t let them go any longer. For me this is usually something around the house, like folding and putting away the clean laundry instead of living out of the basket. Or, in business, it’s updating a non-critical component on the website or in my systems. My life isn’t interrupted or negatively affected by these tasks remaining undone, especially when it’s a choice between this or an anxiety task, but it feels good to have them done. Just be careful that the neglected tasks don’t become anxiety tasks!
What needs to be delegated? This is the one I struggle with the most: is this actually my task to do? In my business, it’s just me, so there is no delegating to someone else! Which means in my personal life I delegate as much as I can … do I have to be the one to put all the laundry away or can my kid put theirs away on their own (the answer is yes.) Do I have to meal plan or can I hand that off to HelloFresh?
This new system has helped me to organize even my priority to do list. Because there’s always a task within my tasks that I want to do, or cause me anxiety, or could be neglected a little while longer, or I do honestly need to delegate or find a way to automate. And it’s helping me better understand and track my tasks and their importance.
This system is new, and only slightly tested, but I wanted to share in the hopes that it would help you if you also struggle with task overwhelm. (It’s even been added to the Magically Mundane, a Notion Template for task management)