Two Ways Goal Setting is Overwhelming for Sensitive Therapists
With Contributions from Liz Gray, LCSW, RPT
This year has made it more difficult than ever to feel focused and energized in our work as therapists. I’m curious if you’re also finding it more difficult to complete work tasks and meet goals? For me, everyday admin tasks and showing up for sessions feels a bit harder, let alone accomplishing the bigger goals of growing my practice or finishing long-term projects. I find myself either taking a long time to finish a task or starting a bunch of projects that I never get finished! All the processing, thinking, analyzing can become frustrating because I’m spending a lot of time in work mode, but not getting as much done as I would like. Plus, more work takes away precious time that could have been devoted to downtime and self-care.
As a Sensitive Therapist, you are already predisposed to feeling overwhelmed under stress and overstimulated by having too much to do at once. This makes it very easy to get behind on notes, have emails and voicemails unanswered, or marketing projects fall off your to-do list. The more tasks that accumulate, the more difficult it can become to stay productive and excited about your work.
Detailed Perfectionist or Big Picture Dreamer
Sensitive Therapists often embody one of two archetypes - the Hawk or the Owl. Each has strengths, but also challenges that make it difficult to move past the overwhelm in order to be able to accomplish daily or longer-term goals.
Maybe you take on the energy of the Hawk:
hyper-focused and attentive to the task in front of you
thorough and detail-oriented
enjoy structure and consistency
can become stuck in perfectionist mode and struggle to zoom out to see the big picture
Or perhaps you take on the qualities of the Owl:
see a project from all angles
a creative problem-solver
idealistic and visionary
find it difficult to zoom in on the details of a project
Personally, I see myself taking on both of these personas from time to time. If I’m writing a progress note or sending an email, I can get so caught up in the specific wording that sometimes I just need to step away and don’t get it done right away. Other times, I start dreaming about a new group I want to offer or how I can revamp my website but don’t have the energy to execute the specific steps. There’s a lot of starting projects, but not as much finishing projects!
It’s important to find that balance of being able to have a vision of what needs done overall in our work, but detail-oriented enough to walk through the individual tasks to get there. The inner Hawk and Owl need to work in tandem.
Moving From Overwhelm to Clarity
Whether you’re a Hawk, an Owl, or a combination of the two, it’s possible to step out of that oh-so-familiar feeling of overwhelm in order to move forward towards your goals, whether that’s simply getting your notes done every day or a bigger dream of expanding your practice or taking more vacation time.
Hawks can benefit from setting limits on each task and reminding yourself regularly that done is better than perfect. I personally tell myself this every time I’m writing a progress note! Whereas, Owls will benefit from zooming in on one task at a time and limiting the number of projects you’re focused on. I know it’s hard when you want to do ALL the things! Both will find value in partnering with a friend or colleague of the opposite archetype to stay accountable.
Goal Setting Without the Overwhelm
If you’re needing more support around meeting goals with less overwhelm and more clarity, I invite you to join me and Liz Gray of Organize and Thrive for an online workshop. Together we’ll walk you through how to set realistic, manageable goals without getting stuck in perfectionist or dreamer mode. Click here to register.
