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This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at DePaul chapter.

It’s easy to feel overwhelmed when things in your life start to pile up. If you haven’t been feeling motivated or you have a lot on your plate, this is the article for you! Everything is attainable if you take a deep breath and make a plan. 

 

1. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT 

You’re reading this article, so you’ve made the first step. It’s okay to feel overwhelmed. Take a deep breath, and understand that it’s normal to feel this way.

 

2. MAKE A LIST

Write down a list of everything that is making you feel overwhelmed. It might sound cheesy but writing everything down on a sheet of paper makes completion appear more attainable. You can choose to number tasks by level of importance or list them in ‘random’ order. Crossing them off will be very satisfying!

To-do, list, paper, pen, journal
Photo by Glenn Carstens-Peters from Unsplash

3. THE 5-MINUTE RULE

A rule created for the sole purpose of helping one deal with procrastination, it’s also a great tactic to handle the feeling of being overwhelmed. The 5-minute rule suggests that you take 5 minutes to start working on a job. After 5 minutes, you can decide if you feel like taking a short break or continuing the task. This is an excellent method that many experts and professionals believe in.

 

4. TAKE BREAKS

You don’t need to complete all your tasks in one sitting! It can take time to finish up the tasks that make you feel overwhelmed. It’s good to reward yourself after finishing functions by taking a break. Only you can determine how you think, so try to listen to yourself.

Tiles spelling out the word 'rest'
Photo by Sincerely Media via Unsplash

5. BELIEVE IN YOURSELF

You can handle it! Remember to work on your tasks, give yourself breaks, and believe in yourself! It’s a slow process, but you can retain better control of the feeling of being overwhelmed by following these steps. 

 

Samantha Carbajal is majoring in Finance and double minoring in Accounting and Economics at DePaul University. In her free time, you can find her meeting new people or going on long runs.