Ep129: Should you plan when you’re exhausted?

00:00 Before we get going, I have an invitation for you. If you're ready to find out how much easier it becomes to get things done when you have Make It Happen Club in your life? The doors are open to new members right now and i would love for you to join us! So Make It Happen club is a calm quiet sanctuary where you get the clarity focus and motivation you need And now, onto today's episode.

00:52 Welcome to Unfrazzle, a podcast for solo business owners with a big vision who are ready for a kinder more sustainable approach to productivity. I'm Louise Miller and each week i share bite-sized insights to help you step away from the hustle stop faffing and stay focused so you can make your brilliant ideas happen and make a bigger impact in the world Before we dive into today's episode, if you enjoy what I'm sharing here on Unfrazzle and you'd like to support the podcast. You can buy me a cuppa by going to BuyMeACoffee.com slash Louise Miller and making a one-off donation. I'll pop a link to that in the show notes Okay grab yourself a cuppa and let's get started

01:30 A little while ago, one of my Make It Happen Club members emailed me letting me know that she was feeling utterly depleted. Life had been dealing her some pretty crappy hands all year and she wasn't sure how to go about making a plan without making what she described as a pressure-filled plan so she was looking for suggestions on how to adapt the quarterly planning process that we do in the club to suit what she described as this burnouty situation and I was so happy that she asked Not only because it allowed me to share some insights that would bring her more peace and ease, but because it also shone a light on one of my blind spots. So an assumption that I've been making about how people relate to planning that's actually not how most people view it. First let me tell you what I told her in advance of our quarterly planning session in response to her email so she has given me permission to share this with you! Here is what I said to her

02:20 Focus solely on your recovery. If there's anything else happening in your life that is non-negotiable and has to happen, feel free to include that but if not it's okay to have just one project and for that project to be getting yourself well again And if that means you end up with a plan that feels sparse... great! Space is your friend embrace it And if anything I share during the session feels unhelpful for you, given your priority is you. Ignore it! Maybe see this session as an opportunity to sit quietly go inward and reflect knowing that keeping things spacious will serve you best." So that's what i said in response to her email and she then showed up to the session and during and kind of after the session my wonderful exhausted client let me know that this advice was a massive help and that she's going to use some of it as a mantra for the next little while

03:07 And then, in a strange coincidence that made me realise I needed to record an episode on this another of our Make It Happen Club members was messaging me during that same session letting me know her plan didn't have very much on it and questioning whether that was okay. My answer again was a resounding yes because i know one thing this person discovered during their time at the club is putting too many things on her plan makes her feel rubbish she's far more motivated & productive when she leaves herself plenty of space So reflecting on the messages I received from those two people on that same day made me realise that i think about planning in a different way to a lot of people and that it would be a good idea to talk about that some more. Here's the controversial thought that I want to share with you today, if you're feeling depleted that doesn't mean you shouldn't plan

03:57 So I suspect that many people would say that trying to do some planning when you're exhausted is a bad idea, that it will add pressure and fry your nervous system even more. And in extreme cases that might be true and i also think there's a way for planning to be helpful so i should say at this point i am not an expert in burnout if you are unwell and unable to make any decisions at all please seek out support from someone who is an expert but if you're feeling depleted and you have at least some capacity to do this Then sitting down quietly in a cozy spot with a cuppa to create a plan can actually be a really good thing when it's done gently, intentionally and with a specific purpose in mind. That purpose being to help you recover! So what I think most people fail to realise about planning is that it can all about deciding what not to do giving yourself permission to say no

04:51 To acknowledge that you're not firing on all cylinders and so some things will have to not happen. And to make that a choice, when you give yourself a little time to look at the things you feel you should be doing and then decide not to do most of it or at least not now... You can stop worrying about it! You can tell the people you need to tell. Clients and collaborators are usually very understanding if you tell them you're having a tough time and won't be able to get things done by the date you'd originally said Is staying off social media for a while going to result in the collapse of your business? Will the world end if your email list doesn't hear from you for a couple of weeks. Is that more important than your well-being? Probably not, so give yourself permission not to do those things instead of fretting about the fact that you're not doing them either way if you want to prioritize your health those things are not getting done but by sitting down and making that choice you don't need to feel guilty about it

05:46 Remember, planning is not about cramming loads of doing in so that you can meet your goals as quickly as possible. And it's also not about planning out exactly what you'll be doing every minute of every day leaving zero wiggle room for you to be human It's about paying attention to how you're doing and choosing where to focus your time and energy So you can move closer to your vision and take care of yourself along the way And if that vision includes being healthy and not working yourself into the ground, it's okay to have a season where the main focus is taking care of yourself. And if that means you have a plan that feels a little empty or sparse embrace it! When you're exhausted you need space to recover and intentionally planning what gets your precious energy and what doesn't is in my experience a really great way of giving yourself that space I hope this helps you think about planning a little differently so you can lean into it when things feel tough

06:38 Remembering that when done gently and thoughtfully, it can relieve the pressure rather than add to it. And as always I hope this helps and look forward to seeing you again soon! Thank you for listening to Unfrazzle. If you enjoyed this episode, please share it with a friend who needs a dose of calm productivity in their life and I'd love it if you could leave me a rating and review as that will help more people discover this podcast! If you would like to hear more from me to help stop faffing and take back control of your time, you'll find the link to join my mailing list in the show notes and I would really love for you to join us. So thanks so much for your support and I look forward to seeing you next time