Do you have too much on your plate? We are all busy and have a lot of responsibilities; however what are some signs that your plate is getting too full? It is important to know when that happens because when you have too much on your plate, it’s going to be hard for you to balance it. Today, I will share with you some common signs that you have too much on your plate.
You Have Difficulty Deciding What Is Your Priority
The first sign that you have too much on your plate is when it is hard for you to decide what is a priority on a given day. Why? Because everything seems like it’s a priority!!! Everything is urgent and everything is important. And it is causing you to have a hard time choosing where to start.
If that is the case for you, it is very likely that you have put too many things on your plate and you’re having a hard time balancing that plate. Everything cannot be a priority. If you are here, it’s time to evaluate.
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You Are Constantly Moving from One Task to Another
The second sign that you have too much on your plate is when you find yourself constantly running from one task to another. There are no breaks! You finish one and immediately move on to the other. And that is your pace day after day. Everything feels rushed!
You constantly feel overwhelmed and tired because you keep going at 100 miles an hour without any rest stops. If this is how days look like for you all the time then it’s definitely a sign that you have too much on your plate.
You Are Always Late
Another sign is when you feel like you are constantly behind. You’re not meeting your deadlines, you’re always a little delayed and asking for extensions on projects, or you’re late to events or appointments.
Sure we all have had situations where we were behind on something or that we were late. But if this is a constant thing that is happening to you then you really have to sit down and evaluate what is happening. Ask yourself: why am I constantly behind? What can I take off of my plate so I can finish things on time and get ahead of schedule?
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You Constantly Feel ‘Mommy Guilt’
Mommy guilt is something that I have talked about before. It is a very common feeling, especially for working moms. We all feel it from time to time. But I have definitely noticed that when I put too many things on my plate, I am getting that feeling much more often.
And it is simply because I am trying to meet all those deadlines and finish all the projects. I’m working all kinds of hours of the day and night and spent less time with my family, which is why that feeling is kicking in.
I am a huge believer that when it comes to spending time with our kids it’s quality over quantity. But if you don’t have any time or just you a few minutes here and there because of all the responsibilities that you have put on your plate, then that’s definitely when you’re gonna start getting that nagging feeling that you’re not spending enough time with your family,
If you keep feeling that then it’s time to take a closer look at what is happening and how can you help yourself by taking some responsibilities off of your plate.
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You Say No to Things that You Want to Do
Another sign that you might have too much on your plate is when you catch yourself saying no to things that you actually really want to do. If that is starting to become a habit, then you have
to be honest with yourself. If you are saying no to things that you actually want to do, things that are aligned with you priorities, then there is something wrong not only with the amount of things you have on my plate but also with the kinds of things that you have on it.
That is also a very good indicator that you need to think about what you have on your plate. Here are some great book recommendations to help you start thinking and working on your own priorities.
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You Don’t Feel Fulfilled
Something that goes along with saying no to things that you actually would love to do is a feeling of not being fulfilled.
You’re very busy. You’re very productive. You keep working on different kinds of tasks and projects both at work and at home. But at the end of the day you don’t really feel happy, fulfilled, or satisfied.
If those are the feelings that you keep experiencing, then it is definitely a sign that you have too much on your plate. And just like in the previous example, the things that you have on your plate might not be the right things either. Because when your life is in balance, you really should feel fulfilled with what you’re doing.
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Sure, you might feel tired sometimes. Your days might be very busy working on different projects. You might even have times of the year or of the month where you feel like your life is out of balance. However, in general you should feel fulfilled and happy. And if you do not, then it’s really time to evaluate the things that you are working on and the things that you are trying to achieve.
It’s Hard to Stay Focused
Having a hard time staying focused on what you’re working on at a given moment is another sign that you have too much on your plate. That is because when you’re working on one task, in the back of your head you still have this voice telling you that you have to hurry up.
You keep having thoughts like: ‘I have to finish this quickly’. ‘I have another thing that is coming up that you need to start working on!’ ‘There is a deadline approaching for another project!’ And those thoughts prevent you from being focused and finishing a task at hand. Which ultimately means that you are taking much longer than is needed to complete that task.
This is a very common sign that you have way too many things going on at the moment and you need to prioritize or delegate.
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You Are Not Getting Enough Sleep
Another sign that you have too much on your plate is when you do not get enough sleep. This could be because you are so busy that you just don’t go to sleep early enough. Or because you have all those thoughts in your head and instead of falling asleep when you go to sleep your brain just keeps on going. You keep on thinking of how many things you still have to do and what deadlines you have coming up.
It is hard for you to turn off that part of your brain and actually fall asleep. And we all know that if we do not get enough sleep in the long run it’s gonna catch up to. We’re going to burn out both mentally and physically. Because sleep is that important!
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You Don’t Have Time for You
The last sign that we have too many things on your plate is when you do not have any time for yourself. In general moms tend to put themselves last. We keep on piling up all those different responsibilities on our plates, between our career or a side business or our family and different volunteer activities, yet, we come very last.
If there is no space on our plate for any ‘me time’ or self-care, your plate will eventually crack or completely break down, And everything in your life is going to be affected!
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So if you constantly are running out of time to dedicate to yourself – whatever that is reading a book, going for a walk, or taking a bath – you will pay the ultimate price. You will eventually run out of steam. Which is the last thing that we want!
Whenever you find ourselves in a situation, where you don’t have time for self-care, you need to take a closer look at what is on your plate. And really prioritize to make sure that you put yourself as one of the priorities on it as well.
Your Turn
Do you currently experience any of those signs? What are you doing to make sure your plate does not get too full?