How to Manage an Overwhelming Workload
It was nearing 12pm, and I had almost made it to my office. In the 50 paces between the door and my peaceful cubicle, interruptions abounded: a staff member intercepted me and informed me that we needed to reschedule the zipline; my boss (a rather clueless exec) asked me which rooms needed to be cleaned before our next group came in an hour; and a guest approached me about an issue with one of my staff members. The hope of sitting down and getting organized was long forgotten in a string of urgent dilemmas. I was the program director for a youth recreation center in Colorado, and though the specific issues I encountered were unique, the sense of overwhelm I felt may be familiar to you.
As job postings increase and companies struggle to fill positions, heavier loads continue to fall on managers. You’re doing your own job AND covering for two unfilled positions on your team. Or maybe your team of three is doing the work of eight positions. Overwork and overwhelm are familiar realities in your world, and you need some coping strategies.
Here are a few survival tactics that have helped me. Please share your own ideas in the comments!
Find a person or two that you can count on. In a pinch, you know they can handle a last-minute project or a little extra work.
Try to specialize roles if possible. Even on a team where everyone does similar work (e.g. sales), you’re going to have people with different strengths. Having those strengths in mind (make a list!) will help you quickly assign tasks to the right people.
Take time to have fun when you do have a few extra minutes. Get everyone out of the office and walk to a coffee or ice cream shop, watch a funny YouTube video, or play a game of hangman on the conference room whiteboard. Simple team-building moments like this are NEVER a waste of time because they pump new life into your exhausted team.
Provide one weekly meeting your team can count on. Invite them to share wins, however small; remind them of the big goal they are working toward; and simplify tasks into top priorities.
Get out there and help whenever you can. Usually, you have bigger fish to fry, but sometimes the priority really is just one employee’s project that everyone needs to pitch in on and complete. Be part of that push and celebrate as a team when you’re done.
There you go—short and sweet because we all know you don't have time to read long articles. Put that manager superhero cape on. You've got this.
