“Where do I begin?” That’s the number one question managers ask at the conclusion of the sessions I present on overcoming overwhelm. When I drill down, I usually discover they’re not just asking on behalf of those on their team. They’re asking for themselves as well. But in reality, the answer is the same – begin at the margins.
So, what does it mean to “begin at the margins?’ To answer that, I tell people the old joke, “How do you eat an elephant? . . . One bit at a time.” We are all saddled with too much information, too many choices, too many demands and too many false promises about how our lives should be. All this results in ever-accumulating stress, unless we act to manage it.
The question, of course, is how do you begin to manage overwhelm and even burnout at the margins. Let me share some simple tactics that you can implement and share with others on your team.
But before I go into those specifics, let’s talk a bit about mindset. Workplace burnout is the result having to make too many micro-decisions. Micro-decisions are all the little distractions that come from technology, advertising, and even the people around you as you navigate the day. Truth is, you can eliminate hundreds of these micro-decisions from your activities each week. But you have to approach the task with the right mindset.
Carol Dweck, author of the landmark book, Mindset, argues that there are two kinds of mindset, fixed and growth. Those possessing a fixed mindset assume that being overwhelmed is just their lot in life. There’s nothing they can really do about it. It’s just part of the job. Those possessing a growth mindset, on the other hand, reject the belief that they simply have to deal with all the distractions and demands that try to sap our time and energy day after day.
Even in the midst of pressure-filled days, those possessing a growth mindset work proactively to get rid of all these time wasters which, in turn, frees up their energy to focus on the important tasks at hand AND have the opportunity to relax and recharge. If you watch them, like I have, you’ll see the differences in their approach to daily life. You can do this too, really!
So, here’s what I see the best thinkers doing to avoid the feelings of overwhelm and even burnout that can creep up on you unless you have a plan for managing them. Ready? Here goes:
First, they eliminate, delegate or automate the little time and energy stealers that dog most people. In other words, they have taken stock of all the tasks and distractions they are confronted with every day. Then they performed an analysis of all these tasks and distractions and categorized them into what they can and should eliminate, what they can and should delegate and what they can and should automate. If you want a more detailed explanation of this, click on the video link in the description. Once they have done this, they begin to eliminate, delegate or automate as many of these tasks and distractions as possible. Many of these decision are the little things that consume your attention but really isn’t necessary. If you want more information on dealing with micro-decisions, click on the micro-decision video in the description.
Second, they have developed the presence of mind to anticipate and manage unnecessary tasks and distractions as they confront them. These include got-a-minute questions, spontaneous meetings, urgent calls, texts or emails about issues that they don’t really need to be involved with and a host of other nuisances that “pop up” during the day. Where most people just relent when these distractions arise, those with a growth mindset are prepared with the responses to manage them at the time they occur. As a result, they conserve time and energy rather than suffering from death by a thousand little diversions.
Third, they take tiny risks. More than anything else, we are defeated many times by our fear of saying “no,” our fear of asking when we don’t know what the response will be, or our hesitation about eliminating, delegating or automating tasks and activities because they may not work out. Those with a growth mindset recognize that there is little risk in acting to deal with marginal nuisances that steal our time and energy. They weigh the risk and reward of acting, consider the possible responses, and then act. While not every one of these efforts works out, they succeed in eliminating a lot of these burdens which cumulatively saves time and energy.
Can you do these three things? Can you teach those on your team to do so as well? Absolutely. But the way, none of this takes time, except for the eliminate, delegate and automate exercise I mentioned before. The rest is accomplished in the moment.
Now, let’s get specific on with some examples of the “marginal” decisions you can eliminate. We can begin with meetings. For each one, ask yourself, “Is it necessary? Can it be accomplished in less time? Can meetings be consolidated? Is everyone’s attendance necessary?” By answering these questions, chances are the decisions will become obvious.
Then there are projects. Rather than a committee, can one person initiate and ask others provide feedback after the initial work is done? Can artificial intelligence be leveraged to both research and create the initial draft? This can also be done with customer proposals, funding requests, policy development and the like.
How about scheduling? Research by Nicholas Bloom and others has found that placing the responsibility for outcomes on individual teams, rather than trying to manage from the top down, yields cost savings, better results and better employee retention. This is especially true for the scheduling and location of work. Simply providing more flexibility as opposed to hard and fast rules also boosts morale and productivity. Contact me and I’ll be happy to point you to this research.
There are more than 100 super-practical tactics like these in my book, Overcoming Overwhelm. Just click the link in the description to find out more. How can you begin at the margins to overcome team overwhelm and workplace burnout? And don’t forget to subscribe to this channel and ring the bell so you’ll be notified when I post more proven ideas just like these. I promise you won’t be disappointed.