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Ask Flex / Overwhelmed, doing the job of three

Ask Flex

How do you get through an extremely busy time at work?

"How do I get through an extremely busy time at work? It's three more weeks of this."You asked Google. Flex answered.
Flex the robot at his desk under a teal umbrella while sticky notes rain down, one finished page in the dry spot in front of him, and little Clawd riding a sticky note down like a parachute
Flex's short answer

Find out when the busy stretch ends, and push everything that can wait until after it. For the weeks in between, do the must-dos only and let AI take the first drafts.

✱ Flex's tips

Give it an end date.

1

Circle the end date

On the calendar, where you can see it.

2

Make a "not now" list

Everything that can wait until after.

3

Tell people early

"I'm slow on replies until the 15th."

4

Let AI do first drafts

Emails, summaries, notes. You check and send.

Try this in your own Claude or ChatGPT

I'm in a very busy stretch at work until [date]. Here's everything on my plate: [list, with the due date for each one]. Split it into must happen before that date and can wait until after, and ask me about anything with no date. Then write a short, friendly note I can send people explaining my replies will be slower until then.

Before you paste work stuff into any AI, check what your company allows.
Free tool

The Three Piles

Type everything on your plate, tap each one into a pile, and walk out with a list your boss can read.

Sort my plate
Flex the robot at his desk under a teal umbrella while sticky notes rain down, one finished page in the dry spot in front of him, and little Clawd riding a sticky note down like a parachute
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✱ What people ask
What if I'm overwhelmed by work deadlines?

Line them up by date, then ask which one can move. One moved deadline changes the whole week.

How do I handle a heavy workload at work?

Shrink what each task takes, and hand back what isn't yours. Flex has a page on it.

I'm overwhelmed at work. How do I cope?

Get it onto one list, then pick one thing. Flex has a page on it.

✱ More from this pile: Overwhelmed, doing the job of three
What do you do when you're over­whelmed at work?How do you manage a heavy workload?Doing the work of 3 people?Over­whelmed at work and want to quit?Does everyone feel over­whelmed at work?Are you doing too much at work?What are the signs you are indispensable at work?Over­whelmed at a new job?So over­whelmed at work you want to cry?How can you be productive at work? The Three Piles
From Nikki's blogFlex tells you how. Nikki tells you what it felt like. Read it on Clawd and Me. Read it →

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