Career worry and overwhelm are robbing you!

In this post, I continue to examine some of the most common symptoms of the Sunday Scaries and this time we are looking at worry and overwhelm. 

Worry is a tricky character. It can trick us into feeling like we are doing something to address our underlying career problems - as if the act of worry itself is going to magically make the problems go away. But it won’t and it can’t. If you think about it, spending more time worrying is not going to make it easier to find a solution. All of the focus of worry is going to the replaying of the problems over and over without ever moving to the solutions. Worry takes a lot of energy and leaves us feeling exhausted, tired, and ineffective. Worse, worry can spiral from briefly hijacking our thinking to becoming a full-time focus.

Meanwhile, overwhelm has an opportunity to show up and add to the chaos. Likely, you are overwhelmed by the sheer weight of putting on a happy face every day at work in the midst of crushing career anxiety, dread, and worry. You feel overwhelmed with the ambiguity and uncertainty of what it will take to achieve career ease. And, you are overwhelmed at all that must be done in each minute of each day, over and over again, to keep your head above water. You wonder how long you can continue at this overwhelming pace.

I can’t really think of anything positive to say about worry or overwhelm. They serve no useful purpose. They both rob you of your calm and make accessing the best of your thinking, your creativity, and your joy for your work virtually impossible. In essence, they stand between you and your ability to move toward a solution to what is ailing your career.

So what can we do about these career hijacking symptoms? Well, in the case of worry, consider what you are worrying about. Now, think about what you can and cannot control about the circumstances. Focusing on the areas that you can control and the changes you can make will help you feel the positive power of taking small proactive steps. Identifying the areas you cannot control, such as others' thoughts and opinions, can help to release the worry because you can see that there is nothing you can do.

Next, let’s take a pass at what can be done with overwhelm. Overwhelm can make you feel like checking out and avoiding the situation altogether as it can feel like it is just too much. However, if you face the overwhelm directly you have the opportunity to shift the control. Take a few deep breaths. Then, make a list of what is on your mind. Getting the items out of your head and onto paper allows you to step back, reexamine each one, and then prioritize where you place your energy and focus.

Vanquishing worry and overwhelm is a process. Taking these initial steps will provide some momentum and start the work of clearing the way to career calm.

Perhaps you would like a guide to walk with you through the getting unstuck from the Sunday Scaries process. I am happy to help. Grab a time and we can talk about it: https://calendly.com/northdawncoach/consultation