Are You In the Red?

Dear Uncommon Leaders, 

Happy Easter! I hope you all had a great weekend and a wonderful day with your families and loved ones.

Have an uncommon week ahead!

This Week's Question:

What do you do when you find yourself overwhelmed?

This Week's Challenge: 

Ever feel like you’re losing control of your calendar and your to-do list is filling up faster than you can manage?

When that happens to me, stress starts creeping into my mind and heart. I call it being “in the red.”

We all get in the red from time to time—whether it’s self-inflicted or life just decides to pile it on. I’ve learned that while it’s normal to go there, it’s not sustainable to stay there.

If you find yourself overwhelmed and under-resourced, here are three simple moves that can pull you back from the red:

1. Stop and Prioritize. When there’s more to do than time allows, everything can feel urgent. But not everything is important.
Pause. Take 5–10 minutes to write down everything that’s on your plate. Then ask:

• What can wait?
• What can be cut?
• What needs to happen next?

This quick inventory often quiets the chaos in my head and helps me breathe again.

2. Ask for Help. Our default question is often: “How am I going to get all this done?” A better question might be: “Who can help me?”

In his book Who Not How, Dr. Benjamin Hardy encourages leaders to accelerate progress by enlisting others. Sometimes that means delegation. Other times, it’s just letting someone lend a hand to lighten the load.

Great leaders don’t carry it all—they collaborate.

3. Learn From the Red. Every time I end up in the red, I try to reflect:

• What did I say yes to that I shouldn’t have?
• What skills do I need to develop?
• Am I refueling regularly, or running on fumes?
• Am I creating margin in my life, or living at full throttle?

Growth comes from paying attention—not just powering through.

Your Challenge This Week: Use one of these strategies to reclaim your margin and reduce your stress. Or better yet, look around you. Who’s clearly in the red right now? Step in. Offer support. You may be the very “who” someone else needs today.

Well, I have to go work on my list and prioritize it; I might just be in the red myself! :)

Have a great week and don't be afraid to ask for help!

This Week's Quote to Ponder:

"No one who achieves success does so without the help of others. The wise and confident acknowledge this help with gratitude." — Alfred North Whitehead

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Until next week,

LET'S GO BE UNCOMMON!

W. Kevin Harrison

Founder and Executive Coach

Uncommon Influence

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