While are not always able to control the causes of the overwhelming situation, you can control how to deal with it. Further the most popular and successful strategies and suggesting on how to deal with too big workload and how to manage you time effectively are described.
Set limits and control the situation
Do not allow people to keep giving you the work when you already barely can manage your workload. It’s not fair to them or you. Get used to say “no” comfortably and set more realistic expectations. Simply recognize that you don’t have endless capacity. The consequences of accepting work when you’re already overwhelmed can lead to missed deadlines, lower work quality, and simply more stress. Remember that not all requests or demands are reasonable, therefore the next time your manager wants to add another project or task to your already busy schedule, try to explain that realistically you can’t take it on now without foregoing some other tasks you are working on.
Review how you are using your time now
Track during couple of weeks the time you are spending in all tasks and activities, both work-related and personal. You might find items that you can stop doing or do them in a different, more time efficient way. Besides, it is important to control interruptions. Social media’s overuse, unscheduled meetings, emails can steal hours every day. Even though interruptions cannot be totally excluded, they can be better controlled.
Prioritize your tasks in a clever way
Assign a priority tag to each task:
A—urgent and important
B—important but not urgent
C—urgent but not important
D—not urgent or important
When starting your day, firstly, focus on A’s. When you get them done, move to the B’s, then the C’s. Often tasks D are becoming unnecessary by itself, and can be safely ignored. Besides, do one task at once (the ones that require focused attention. Complete the most important thing first, then move to the next item and work down your list.
Limit your time on tasks
Doing a certain task for an hour may be a good investment but spending five hours doing the same task may be time wasted. Therefore follow your plan and make sure you do some tasks in the limited time set for them.
Sources:
http://michaelhyatt.com/when-you-feel-overwhelmed-by-your-workload.html
http://pmctraining.com/site/resources-2/overwhelmed-strategies-to-manage-your-time-and-workload/
http://www.eatyourcareer.com/2012/12/how-to-deal-with-an-overwhelming-workload/