I'm at my limit

[cjsmith]

I'm at or very close to my limit on the amount of things I can handle, remember, do, follow up on, remind people about, keep track of, or live up to. I'm starting to drop things.

So far nothing bad has happened. So far I have been reminded of semi-forgotten things in plenty of time to do them, or I've had good alternatives at hand. However, depending on luck is not a wise long-term strategy.

Obviously the right answer is to drop or to delegate. ("Drop" can include "postpone.") I wish I knew what to drop.

• Car accident stuff: insurance claim phone tag, evaluating what to buy, occasional chiropractor visits
• My job, which has way too many sub-items
• Calling engagements: tonight, this entire weekend, next entire weekend
• Caring for Duchess
• Sleep

Obviously I could have and perhaps should have dropped some social life over the past week. Almost certainly I should scale back on LJ. The rest of this doesn't seem very droppable. I've already dropped the entire concept of exercise and of seeing anyone about my feet.

Maybe I just gotta get through it. If so, I need a better system. Keep the Palm more up to date? Try to build a habit of looking at it? Make my calendar at work pop reminders up on my screen? Try to build a habit of setting aside an hour or three each week to look ahead to (and make sure I'll be ready for) anything happening in the next couple weeks?

Bleah.

Comments

Re: did you want suggestions?

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

(Replying by number so as to keep it organized...)

1. I find that looking ahead helps me a great deal. Shortly after I wrote this post I put an automated reminder in my work calendaring system so that periodically it would pop up a window saying REVIEW WEEK. I love it. Suddenly I am, while just as overwhelmed, not quite on the ragged edge of losing things.

2. I too find it hard to keep the work thinking limited to work. Right now, I'm trying to be strict with myself about that. I am busy enough outside of work that I need to compartmentalize. Usually I do take a lot home with me, mentally if not physically.

In what way were you thinking this categorization would help? If I had to guess I would say it might help in terms of giving me "free time" in the evenings to be NOT working. Is that what you had in mind?

3. Fortunately the sudden spike in square dance calling activity is going to be of short duration! One more weekend (and a Tuesday night) and I get well over a week off (probably more than two). Wow. :-)

4. I'm still not sure how urgent buying a car is, and this point crystallizes the question for me. I should call the insurance people and FIND OUT. That would be useful for me in terms of prioritization and in terms of having appropriate, not overblown or too weak, stress levels about it.

I agree that sleep isn't droppable. Very very short busy spikes can do well with dropping sleep, at least for me, but more than a day or two can only be worsened by losing sleep, not helped! :-)

5. Thank goodness I *do* have "back up care". It's not ideal, in that I have to pre-arrange it and go make a trip to give someone a house key, but it's a whole lot better than Duchess getting nothing while I'm out of town for a square dance gig! PHEW!

Thanks so much for taking the time to give me all these thoughts.

*deep breath*...

best,
CJ

Re: did you want suggestions?

[moriamerri.livejournal.com]

1. cool!
2. well, sorta kinda. If you are taking mental work home then it seems likely this is impairing your "mental space" for other topics, but may not be reducing your "time" in a noticable way. Mental space is subtley. However, my asking about it may actually be silly -- since NOT thinking about work concerns at home may not actually be something one can decide to do without tremendous effort. But -- idea is that having work life compartmentalized to working time/place leaves more time AND thinking room for other things (including figuring out what, if anything, can be delayed, delegated, etc)
4. yes -- I think worth some work and thinking hard about it as then you'll know how hard to fret/hurry/etc. And MAYBE you'll get some bit of reprieve.

:) Moria

Re: did you want suggestions?

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

2. Yeah, mental space is a subtle thing, although I think the effects of not focusing well can be pretty big. It's probably worth musing on this one a little more. You're right, though, "just deciding" isn't that easy!

4. Looks like this one is going to drag out. That's both good and bad, *sigh*.

:)