For the first time in my college career, I'm taking on multiple new things at once. I have been writing for The Odyssey for about a year now. I just started as an independent consultant at Mary Kay cosmetics. I also have a job that I work at about thirty hours a week, on top of taking sixteen hours in school. Needless to say, sometimes I can feel a little bit bogged down. I can get overwhelmed with all of my responsibilities and want to give up on some of them, but you can't just give up when other people are relying on you. Here are four tips to help you not feel so overwhelmed when juggling multiple facets of your life.
1. Take a break if you need to
Sometimes, you need a day to just breathe. Take a day to just relax and spend time with yourself. If you work a job, ask for a day off and just go enjoy yourself. Your mental health is far more important than trying to please everyone else. Remember to give yourself time out of the week and don't get too tied up in trying to do EVERYTHING, because you can't. You will probably have to say no every now and then.
2. Learn to say no
In some instances, you can't say no. For instance, you can't say no to doing an assignment for class, unless you want your grade to suffer. You can't say no to working a shift, without risking your performance. Sometimes, you'll get opportunities that you can say no to, however. For example, one of your co-workers calls and asks you to pick up an extra shift. You have the option to say no if you want to. I, for a long time, used to be consumed with guilt if I said no, and I would end up taking the shift and getting stressed out because of it. It was something I had to come to terms with. I had to learn to say no without feeling bad about it.
3. Schedule your time
Get a day planner and start scheduling around what you have to do for the week. If a test is coming up on Friday and you have work Thursday night, make sure you schedule study time Thursday before work, or earlier in the week. Also, scheduling your time will make sure you don't overbook yourself. Scheduling your time will also help you feel less overwhelmed when the tasks come up. Schedule time to set aside to finish any tasks that you have and give yourself time each day to do something you enjoy. Ultimately, don't stress yourself out.
4. Manage activities as you need to
It may not be ideal but it is necessary sometimes. You might have to quit one of your extra activities, and that is okay! Like I said before, your mental health is so much more important! And sometimes, you simply can't do it all! So if you need to, quit an activity. Stick to the activities you have a passion for!
