Oh hiyaaaa, been a little while. October has been a bit mad, sorry about me, I am bloody shattered. I’m sat on the sofa working today which I haven’t done in ageees. I feel like I could stay here for days, living in a pit, eating shit food and watching endless TV. I’m struggling today to be honest with you. I feel off balance, had a little bit of a shitty weekend and my head doesn’t feel focused enough for a new week. I’ve had a bit of a system in the past month to get on with work work, fit in uni work (which has been a lot), attempt to keep on top of housework, take the dog for walks, stick with Slimming World, sleep and still try to find some time to see people as well as do nothing. It’s been okay, I’ve somehow managed. But today feels like it’s caught up with me a little bit. No space to do anything.
Today I stare at my to-do list, wondering how I’ll get out of this phunk. I could sleep for years and doing anything that I have to do seems pretty out of the question.
With so much to do, I thought it would be worth taking a minute to come up with a plan on how to stay sane when the list gets bigger. It’s all things we probably know, but I needed to hear it today so here goes.
Accept defeat – Starting with this one because actually some days are just write offs aren’t they? You can feel more stressed by forcing yourself to focus on something that your head just isn’t in. Take a break, start again tomorrow. Make up for it. Accept that it’s okay to have days or hours that aren’t always productive. It’s normal.
Remind yourself why you started – Whether it’s a uni course or overtime or a new diet, remind yourself of your goals. I know I’ve got a lot on with my degree; I’m trying to write as much as I can whenever I can but it’s not always easy and I do have to remind myself that I’m doing it for me and nobody else; it’ll be worth it in the end.
Make a plan – The only way I’ve managed to keep on top of things so far is by creating a weekly plan, I print it off each week and spend time really working out what needs to get done. Some days I don’t manage the daily tasks but it helps know what I need to have achieved by the end of the week. It doesn’t always go as plan – I’m a day behind but I wouldn’t know this if I hadn’t broke it all down.
Find the right time – I’m most productive in the morning, which isn’t ideal as I can’t always fit in everything around working, but knowing when you’re more likely to get things done, helps. I know come 7pm I’m pretty much done for the day so planning tonnes in the evening doesn’t always work.
Avoid distraction – This won’t help when you’re just not in the mood, but if you do need to focus on something and only have a short amount of time, getting away from all the distractions has helped me smash out things that need my attention. I’m a sucker for working with the TV on in the background but if I need to get something done, I can’t have my favourite shows on or if I’m itching to go for a walk or get the washing up done then I make sure I take a quick break to do these things before I sit down to get them off my mind.
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Everyone works in different ways and to be honest, I don’t feel like following much of my own advice today. But writing this was my start. I’m going to take lunch, shower, go for a walk and hope that this afternoon goes a little better. And if not, never mind. Tomorrow will do.
Do you have any tips to get through your to-do list?
I reaaaally hope to catch up with you all soon.
lovelove,
thehouseonthegreen 