Expectation overwhelm is when you have a to-do list that is so long that it overwhelms you. This starts a defeating cycle of hustling, beating ourselves up for not doing 'enough', and not really feeling empowered to live a life of purpose. 

 
Feeling productive and the beliefs we have about how we spend our time
Coach women a lot on productivity and procrastination

They feel like they can’t get things done in the day

They want to be better at getting things done. 

And it is the same issue on both ends of the spectrum - they are about how we FEEL about how we spend our time.  Did we FEEL we were productive? did we FEEL they procrastinated?

Remember our FEELINGS come from our thoughts. So the story we tell ourselves about how we have used our time is going to matter. It will change our experience of how we use our time. 

 
What is expectation overwhelm?
Expectation overwhelm is when we have such a long 'should do' list that it constantly overwhelms us. We walk around thinking something is wrong with us that we can't tackle. We think we need more willpower and discipline. 

We also get frustrated with everyone around us and might even blame them (check out the mom martyr episode) 

 
Some signs that you might have expectation overwhelm:

* you find it hard to relax for a minute in your day
* you feel like everything is rushed
* you feel overwhelmed even though you generally get things done
* you check things off your list but still feel like it’s never enough

 
What do we do with the overwhelm we feel?
In my experience in coaching, and personal experience. WE do one of two things. We try harder or we tune it out. Both of these make us feel even worse about our skills and discipline. Both of these move us further away from the simple and purposeful life we are craving. 

 
The options should be optional
We make a mental 'should' do list with all the expectations we have ourselves in a day. But we tell ourselves this list is mandatory and then we tell ourselves we are inadequate for not fulfilling them all

 
We are meant to make choices
This is something that minimalism has taught me. I don't have ROOM for all these things. I also don't have time and energy for all these things. I need to choose. 

But making choices can be very intimidating for a lot of us. We think it means a long-term commitment. We also still secretly hold out for that secret we need to unlock our ability to do ALL THE THINGS!

 
Trade-in productivity for purpose
I think most of us want to feel productive, but we live in a society that tells us we need to do DO IT ALL AND LOOK GOOD DOING IT. 

I would argue that most of us do not want to be productivity robots - but that we actually want to slow down and live the life that we crave. We want to let go of never feeling like we are enough, and make more time and energy for the things that fill us up. 

 
Know what you want in your life

* The Live your Vision worksheets
* The Live your