The "3-Ps" for Breaking Out of a Painful Rut

I can’t believe it. It’s only mid-January and my new year bliss has already given way to that old familiar “too-much-to-do, too-little-time” rut.

Maybe it’s because I have an inventive mind that never really rests. Maybe it’s because I took a couple of weeks off, and now I’m coping with the back-log. Either way, today my stress level rose under an avalanche of things “un-done”. I was scattered, bouncing from task to task like a ping pong ball. It's actually painful to feel so overwhelmed.

Have you ever felt this way—immersed in so much chaos that you don't know what to do next? 

This feeling may be familiar, but I don't need to keep suffering from it. This year, I’m committed to building better habits to manage stress. So today, rather than feeling that familiar pain of behaving like a ping pong ball, I activated the 3Ps:

• Pause

• Prioritize

• Plan

These 3 powerful, sequential steps can make the difference between overwhelming chaos and calmer, organized control. To break it down:

Pause.

Chaotic thinking can become a habit. The first thing we must do is PAUSE to interrupt the pattern. Today I stepped outside, took a few deep breaths, and felt the breeze. Ahhhhh. It was a relief to STOP the spin, quiet my mind, and connect with the moment. When you start to feel stress, give yourself permission to PAUSE.

Prioritize.

There is only so much that any of us can do in a day. When we proactively PRIORITIZE, we take back our power. So I focused on today's most important tasks. I reviewed January goals and wrote down three things that HAD to happen (URGENT), and 3 things that would help me make progress toward my strategic objectives (IMPORTANT). Taking charge of your priorities is KEY for your career success! Don't wait for someone to do this for you. Try to do it yourself on (at least) a monthly and weekly basis.

Plan.

When tasks are too big or ill-defined, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. Once you have paused and prioritized, the next powerful action is to PLAN. Writing down the specific steps it will take to get anything done removes the mystery and helps you see the path forward. Today I wrote action items for each of my priorities. When that was done, I felt infinitely more prepared to tackle the tasks ahead!

Making these lists can also help you have clear and direct conversations with your manager or colleagues about deadlines and work load. This powerful planning practice can help you understand your work load, set better boundaries and avoid stress before it even begins!
 
Ultimately, I'd call today a success. Not only did I reclaim my calm, but I also did the good work of starting to rewire a habit. Without the 3-Ps, chaos may have bested me. Today I did better.
 
I paused, prioritized and planned, turning feelings of stress and anxiety into powerful action.

Where can you put the 3-Ps to work?