If your boat is getting bogged down by mental clutter and you find yourself no longer enjoying the ride ... it's time to STOP and find yourself a new system, my friend.
You're going to burn yourself OUT.
You can make mental notes, pre-set reminders, and write out endless to-do lists, but ultimately those pending tasks are still going to cause you MASSIVE brain drain.
Consider these thoughts like apps on your phone. Without closing the tabs, they are left running in the background, slowly and consistently draining your battery.
We often use these methods as our ride-or-die "bandaid" solutions:
"I'll create a system when work slows down"
"My kids keep me too busy to purposefully create chaos in my life"
"I don't have the energy to get creative right now"
We end up working harder and faster, trying to retain and track all of the moving pieces. STOP. You're not a robot. You're a human. You can't keep adding more to your boat because you're going to capsize.
Instead, try this:
Compile a list of the things you need to do and estimate how long each of them will take to complete. (It doesn't need to be perfect - just guess.)
Block chunks of time in your calendar to complete the task.
It's that simple.
" But Janice, what if something comes up and I need to move the appointment?!"
"But Janice, I don't have a clear idea of how long this is going to take me!"
Don't worry about it!
The goal here is to be able to let yourself relax, knowing you have it booked in your calendar. If it does get bumped to a different day or week - make a note of WHY. If it gets bumped more than 3 times - Check in to see what needs re-prioritizing; Either it replaces something existing - or maybe it doesn't make it on the list at all.
Either way - it's off your boat.