There’s another way to outsource jobs that you can’t complete on your own and to get help as well.
And what is that? Simple: ask your friends for help!
A lot of us feel bad about asking for help because we don’t want to be a burden and/or show weakness. The reality though, is that friends are there to help each other and this cuts both ways.
If you are struggling with the large number of tasks you have and you’re feeling overwhelmed and stressed, chances are that your friends will want to help you.
Asking Friends for Help
There are many examples of tasks that can be made a little easier with some help from your friends. Perhaps you’re moving home for example. Instead of spending all your time and energy moving your things yourself, consider asking a friend if they’ll help you organize your possessions and transport them with you.
Meanwhile, if you find you don’t have time to look for holiday ideas, why not just ask your friends if they have any good recommendations?
And if you’re really struggling and you don’t have time to pick up your children from school, then why not ask another parent if they can help?
Often you can share the burden with friends as a way to reduce your workload too. Why not take it in turns to pick up your kids from work for example and that way you’ll have to spend almost 50% less time driving to and from the school! Likewise, you could even agree to do a similar system for the weekly shop.
Of course you don’t want to take advantage of your friends and keep getting them to do things for you. But when you’re really struggling, there is nothing wrong with just asking for a little help – you’d do the same for them! And when it’s mutually beneficial, then there’s really no downside!
Other Ways to be Vocal
Being vocal doesn’t just mean asking your friends for help though.
Sometimes it can also mean doing the opposite. Sometimes you might find yourself doing too much for your friends or shouldering too much of the work and chores at home. In either of these situations, being vocal might just mean speaking up and telling your friends, family or partner that you’re going to have to start doing a little less.
This is even more important at work. If you find that you keep getting more and more work piled on then this can be highly disheartening – especially if it feels like you’re carrying other people.
Don’t be afraid to speak up and tell your employer that you have too much work and that you’re struggling – or even to outright refuse to take on anyone else’s work unless it’s reflected in your salary.
This all comes back to what we were talking about in the last chapter: valuing your time!
Follow the tag THE STREAMLINED MIND to read the complete series.
