How to stay focused when everything feels stressful

In the past two years, we’ve experienced more disruption than we typically experience in decades. As if the 2020 pandemic wasn’t enough, we’re now dealing with inflation rising at the highest rate in more than 40 years, empty grocery store shelves, falling stock tickers and gas prices more than double before 2020. (How I miss the good old days of $2 a gallon.)

In an attempt to stem the runaway inflation train, rising interest rates have pressured homebuyers with skyrocketing mortgage rates and employers, leading to news of a new wave of layoffs almost every time you log on to LinkedIn. Then there is the ongoing war in Ukraine and so many other situations big and small that can cloud our focus and distract our minds. No wonder sentiment was at an all-time low in June, according to the University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index.

Amid a chaotic present and an uncertain future, how do you stay productive and focused on what you can do rather than dwelling on situations that are largely out of your control? As a time management coach and as someone who wrestles with the same questions in my daily life, here are some of the best strategies I’ve found to keep getting things done and feeling less overwhelmed:

Get everything on paper

When you’re constantly feeling distracted, the root cause is often anxiety. To find out what’s really bothering you, start writing a brain dump of everything that’s on your mind. These could be big things, like what’s going to happen to the economy, or they could be mundane things, like preparing for the busy start of the school year or figuring out how to declutter the living room. All that comes to mind is fair game to write it down.

I find that sometimes it works best to literally write my thoughts down on paper, and sometimes it’s easier to just type them into a Word document. Do what feels easiest.

Act where you can

When you have everything written down, circle or mark where you can take action. Fear of situations in which you have some level of control can inspire you to prepare for the future in a healthy way.

Think about what you can do, such as B. Reviewing your retirement goals, talking to neighborhood parents about carpooling in the mornings if you have early meetings, or planning an evening out with your spouse to make progress in the living room. Then add them to your to-do list or calendar to keep you moving forward. Making changes to improve your situation is a healthy and helpful way to use your nervous energy instead of simply distracting yourself with your phone.

Let go of what is outside of you

While there are many situations where we can do something to change the outcome, there are some cases where we don’t have much control. We just have to do our best in the moment and then react to what happens when it happens. For example, I recently learned that my husband’s company is going to cut 8,000 jobs. In addition, my parents are retired, making them particularly vulnerable to the effects of inflation and downturns in stock and bond markets.

I can’t control these situations, but they bother me, so I need to let my mind go regularly so I don’t wake up at 3 or 4 in the morning with racing thoughts.

This is where practices like meditation, prayer, and journaling play such a crucial role for all of us to become calm, peaceful, centered, and focused during uncertain times. Each morning I take time to be quiet, to pray, and to let go of my concerns, and if I come across something that bothers me during the day, I try to journal it before the lights go out. While I still don’t know what is going to happen with my husband’s job or many other situations, I can honestly say that I feel at peace and present at the moment.

Take a break from typing

The above strategies cannot change big issues in our lives, but they can make us feel calmer, more focused, and more present. Unfortunately, we are often tempted to turn to activities that do the opposite – such as B. endless scrolling on our phones. Instead of feeling what we’re feeling, taking action where we can, and letting go of what we can’t control, we seek information that gives us hope or numbs us. Unfortunately, social media usually only makes us more anxious and distracted.

If you’re noticing a pattern of anxiety, so checking social media and then feeling more distracted than before, I encourage you to take a break from this coping mechanism. In my life, I try to limit my social media look to about once a day, and then I usually take a social media break on the weekends. These breaks allow me to regain my focus on all that is still good in the world and focus on being present in the here and now.

If you’re struggling in this area and need a little extra help staying away from your phone or distracting websites, you might want to enlist the help of a blocker (like Freedom.to) to break the vicious cycle of distraction.

Go into each day with a plan

When you’ve done all of this, you’re doing a good job of raising your awareness of what not to do, but you’ll still end up getting distracted and wasting time if you’re not sure what make. That’s why I recommend you start each day with a plan. You can create this plan when you finish work the day before, before bed, or at the start of your workday.

The most important thing is to have a plan so your mind knows what to focus on and what to do as you start your day. And if at any point you start to feel anxious or tempted to get distracted, stop, take a few breaths, go for a walk, write a little, or do whatever you need to do to refocus to focus and then return to the plan.

No matter what’s going on in the world, you can choose to stay focused, peaceful, and present in the now. With these strategies, you can not only survive, but thrive and enjoy the journey no matter what.