A peptalk if you're feeling strapped for time
+ a thank-you and 3 new favourites
A note with the words ‘I have all the time I need’ has been living on my dining table, desk and nightstand for the past few weeks. It’s a reminder I come back to again and again when I find myself slipping into feelings of time scarcity.
If you’re feeling strapped for time, like your to-do list will never end, this post is for you.
+ as a thank-you for following along with the launch of Small business newsletter magic for the past month, I’ve created a phone wallpaper with one of my favourite mantras for you: I have all the time I need. Scroll down to the bottom of the newsletter to download.
I’ve long been a fan of Sarah Robertson of These Are The Days: she did the brand design for my website and newsletter, and writes a truly calm and purposeful newsletter, Brand Seasons. From July 14th onwards, she’s running her six-week summer email retreat Brand Camp, which will make you feel excited about where your brand is heading, equipped to make meaningful progress and energised in your vision, values and voice. This is a slower experience by design — something you can ease into alongside family life, client work or a much-needed creative breather.
You’ll also receive early access to The Lookout, Sarah's new brand audit tool to help you clarify what matters. Join for £60 or £25 for Brand Seasons Clubhouse members (currently 25% off for life).
I have all the time I need
While I’ve designed my life to be slow and gentle, I too get days and weeks when I get overwhelmed. With the end of the academic year, my part-time teaching job got particularly busy a few weeks ago. That’s when it was time for a note to myself.
I have all the time I need.
This phrase calms me down, even if nothing else changes. It also reminds me not to rush—because rushing only makes the feelings of stress and overwhelm worse. It reminds me to root into the moment, and to make intentional decisions about what is on my list (and what needs to go).
Some strategies to try when you feel strapped for time:
Stick with your rest and self-care routines because you need them even more. By skipping them and telling yourself you don’t have time to do them, you’re only reinforcing the feelings of stress in your body and mind.
Formulate your most important thing(s): what is the one thing (or things) that absolutely need to get done today? Once you’ve done that, formulate the most important self-care thing for today too. Prioritising like this forces you to make decisions that create space.
Have rest be actually rest. This is one of my biggest lessons of this year. I regularly took breaks—generally every 30 minutes—but those breaks were often not truly restful. I’d use them to order the groceries online, to tidy up around the house, to do some life admin. A flare of chronic fatigue has forced me make these breaks truly restful, which for me generally means sitting (or lying) down on the sofa with a book.
Make sure it’s temporary: if the feelings of overwhelm don’t ease up, bigger changes need to happen. What part of your life needs to shift? What project do you need to scale down? What do you need to pause? Where can you ask for help? This is much easier said than done, I know, but vital if you don’t want to burn yourself into the ground.
More resources
A thank-you
As a thank-you for following along with the launch of Small business newsletter magic last month, I’ve created three phone wallpapers with the mantra “I have all the time I need”.
books | I’ve been making my way through all of Claire Fuller’s novels, and especially loved Our Endless Numbered Days and Unsettled Ground—beautiful, unsettling and sure to stick with you (affiliate links).
a film | J and I went to see a film for the first time in ages—we saw The Phoenician Scheme at our local arthouse theatre two weeks ago (and were the only ones at the 16:00 showing 😅). The film is Wes Anderson doing what he does best: a whimsical world to dive into it, strange characters and at times bizarre dialogue.
summer planning guide | Sarah of Sarah and Maude has started creating seasonal planning guides, with the summer one now available. I’m enjoying working my way through the guide and grounding myself in the season.
I hope you’re enjoying a slower pace these days—whether it’s taking a break completely, or getting stuck in a new project. Have a beautiful rest of your week x
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Such an important reminder! I love the old Pennsylvania Dutch saying, "The hurrieder I go, the behinder I get." The importance of listing out those priorities really helps. I had a tough time making rest time be rest time when I was teaching. Now I know that leaving to much left on the to-do list will interfere with effective rest time and that motivates me to be more productive during task time. It's a cycle, but it works❣️
Thanks for the reminder Astrid! I reckon I can use the same mantra for when I feel like progress is slow. I have time...I don't have to get to the finish line today.