When You Are Feeling Overwhelmed Do the Plan
TL;DR
- Starting out it may feel like there is way too much to do.
- Planning routines may reduce the mental load.
- A content strategy is a guide when you don’t know what to do.
Beginning a blog isn’t something simple. At times it may feel overwhelming. A planning routine will help you divide your time into actionable tasks. Develop a guiding content strategy that grows traffic to your blog.
This is a topic close to my heart. I often deal with choices that feel like too much. I’m easily overloaded, but there is one way that I deal with this.
Do the plan
On my birthday, my friend and I went to Disneyland and California Adventure. These Disney theme parks offer a lot of things for visitors. I made up a plan early in the day to make things manageable. To maximize our time while we were there. After every ride, my friend asked me what I wanted to do. Listing off our many choices. Which was endlessly frustrating to me. I told her, thank you for asking but let’s do the plan.
That’s what I need to reduce my anxiety. Too many choices mean decision regrets. A plan strips away that confusion. It is important to have a planning routine that helps you get things done.
A Planning Routine Requires a Planner
There are systems out there that may seem like a great solution. This can lead to planner overwhelm. A feeling that we are trying to avoid. My suggestion is to start out with something simple and add things as you need them. The most important is to develop a functional planning routine. That you will follow through with.
The organization of your planner does matter. There is one method that works for me all the time. It allows me to plan with intention while also being flexible enough for changes. You’ve most likely heard about this before. I use the Bullet Journal method.
The Bullet Journal Method
The simplicity of the bullet journal is what makes it useful. That may not mesh with what you’ve seen. People show off their special layouts and decorations. Some even use watercolors and gouache paint.
You don’t need any of that!
Also, it doesn’t have to be expensive either. You could pick up something as simple as a composition book. They are cheap and you can get them anywhere they sell school supplies. Whatever you have on hand will work to get started.
I’m not going to go into how to do it in this article. You can view the video below. The creator of the method, Ryder Carroll, explains how it works. This should be enough for you to get the gist of what it is all about.
In a lot of ways, it is a glorified to-do list. It is the method of organization that makes it so handy. It works for me and it might be worth trying out for you. I use a modified form of the bullet journal that makes more sense for my needs. Here are some of my layouts. Feel free to steal.
Developing a Planning Routine
My planning routine is a daily ritual that I experience. I’ve integrated it into my life such that it is a habit.
I pull out my daily planner in the morning. I write down three tasks from my monthly to-do list. This prevents me from feeling overwhelmed by everything that I need to get done. I am satisfied when I complete my three tasks for the day. Checking them off is a great pleasure and a reminder that I’m doing okay.
As my day goes on, I fill out my daily log after meal times. I fill out my intention for the day at the top of the page. Then I check in after meal times. I write down what work I’ve done towards my tasks and intentions. This helps me re-adjust my plan. Sometimes, I have to give up on doing something and these check-ins help me decide that.
I also use time tracking so that I can see at a glance how I spend my day.
I do a weekly reset on Sundays. It is one paragraph that I write at the bottom of my weekly tasks. I will write down what I did well that week. As well as what I need to improve on. This puts me in the right mindset for the next week. This review is something that I look forward to.
You need to connect your planning routine to something you do as a habit. This is why waking up and meal times work for me. There are moments in the day when I take a pause. When the pressure is off for about an hour. This is my self-care time and I make room for that.
A Content Strategy is A Fancy Word for Planning
You can apply your planning routine to your blog. The best way to do this is by creating a guiding document called a content strategy. It is where you will list out all the things you need to do for successful blogging. When you know what the plan is, you can do the plan.
Break your project into steps. The ones you need to take that you can add to your bullet journal as tasks. It is easier to think through the things you need to get done this way. I find this prevents my feelings of overwhelm. I can do at least three tasks a day that get me closer to completing my blog.
I’m not writing a separate article on content strategy. There are guides out there that already do a great job. There is one in particular from Buffer that works well. It is an older article but it contains a lot of wisdom. You can ignore the parts that don’t apply.
How to Write a Content Marketing Strategy Step-by-Step by Jeffrey Kranz
Conclusion
Feeling overwhelmed is common when you begin blogging. There are many decisions to make and think through. You can create a planning routine that splits your tasks into manageable to-dos. A content strategy will keep you on track to reach your goals.
What tasks are you putting off and how can we help?