You know you need balance in your life, but what about those times when your balance is so shaky you feel like you are going to tip over? You know what you are supposed to do: Identify the important tasks and start with those, working your way down the list to the items which a lower priority. But most of what’s on your plate is both important and urgent with deadlines looming?

Welcome to the club. Many of us are overwhelmed. When this happens, most of us keep our heads down and slog forward. This is probably why so many school librarians and other educators counted down to the last day of school with more fervor than ever before. And even though the school year is over or almost over, depending on where you live, you know Fall is lurking in the distance and will be here before you know it. Then it will begin all over again.

Unless you have a plan.

Kristen Hendrix knows well what it’s like when your “cup runneth over”. The phrase generally refers to abundance, but it has another meaning to her and to most of us. In her blog post Cup running over? It might be time to dump it out, Hendrix takes a hard look at the quotes and memes around those words. She notes we’ve been told you can’t pour from an empty cup but must keep it filled with self-care making it possible. But she acknowledges that self-care is harder to fit into an already crammed schedule. Hendrix prefers asking, “What goes in the cup? How can I know when it’s too empty or too full? How can I use these insights to anticipate or respond to burnout?”

To answer these questions, she suggests we look at these six ideas which flow into each other:

• The Cup of Life – While we all have this cup, what we put into it is unique to us. We are the ones who are filling it. If we just keep adding water, the cup will overflow. You can’t keep pouring more into it than it can hold. As Hendrix says, we must be mindful of what we are putting into it before this happens. Which is why the next idea is….
• Filling Our Cup – Whatever we put into our cup can be put into categories such as work, family, health, volunteering, etc. Her comment about including “adulting (eating, showering, dressing, brushing teeth, etc)” resonated with me. Somedays, I feel getting undressed at night is one more chore. To determine how we fill our cup, we need to recognize whether it’s draining or energizing.
• Managing to the Brim – It’s our choice whether we fill our cup to the brin or leave a little space in case something needs to be added. I am a to-the-brim person, but what happens when there is a change, and there’s a new task or responsibility? Unless you recognize the effect it will have, you will quickly become overwhelmed. I’ve learned to consider whether the new commitment fits with my priorities, purpose, and passions. If it doesn’t, I don’t take it on. If I do take it on, I look to see what can be delayed, cut back, or even eliminated.
• Dump It All Out – Hendrix recounts her own breakdown when it all became too much. She had to eliminate everything until she recovered. The object is to recognize when you are approaching this tipping point before it happens. You may have to withdraw from a volunteering job you took on or find someone who can help you with one or more of your tasks.
• Preventing Burnout – Recognize all that you are doing and prioritize. Hendrix recommends using the 80/20 rule (the Pareto Principle), which says that 80% of your results comes from 20% of your work. Focus on the productive 20%. What are your goals? If what you are doing doesn’t move you toward it, consider eliminating it. And if elimination isn’t a possibility, it may be time for the next step – delegating it.
• Getting Help – Help can come in many forms, from people to work with which lightens the load to speaking with a professional if you who have become depressed and feel the joy is gone from your days. You can also reach out for a mentor, a friend, or anyone who will listen. Keeping everything bottled up when your stress is bubbling up inside is a recipe for a serious problem.

I recently said to someone that I was “whelmed,” – one more drop and I would be overwhelmed. Leaders need to be honest with themselves and recognize when they have become over-committed. Too many people are counting on us. Abundance is great, but too much is too much.