Verified by 
When you're busy and exhausted, give one of these suggestions a try, even if you doubt how well it will work for you. We're not always great at predicting how much benefit we'll get from a particular cognitive or behavioral strategy, so experiment and observe your results rather than guessing.
1. Do the activity you think you don't have time for.
When we're busy, we often crave time to do a particular activity that we think would help us feel much better. Perhaps you crave time for a long walk, a bath, to cook a meal from scratch, or to knit.
Try doing whatever it is you're craving. Observe whether it boosts your energy to the extent you don't get less done of whatever you're excessively busy with, whether that's work, study, parenting, etc.
What I crave when I'm busy is time to drive across town to a supermarket that sells big bunches of Thai basil and other ingredients I use to make summer rolls. What very specific activity do you crave time for?
2. Use the "a change is as good as a vacation" principle.
No this isn't strictly true, but a change can boost your mood and energy. For example, work in a different place from where you usually work. Or, change up your routine (reverse the order of activities, or change physical location).
When you're busy, you often won't have the mental energy to plan anything. Therefore, you may need to make your change on a whim, like going to work at the library for the day.
3. Take a weekend away.
When we're busy, weekends often don't feel restorative. If your to-do list is never-ending, that can leave you feeling like you can never relax. If you go away for a weekend (or even a single day or overnight), you get the benefit of a change, mentioned above. You also get the benefit of getting physically away from your to-do's at home.
What's local to you that works for a quick getaway? For example, where I live there is a state park I enjoy that's 90 minutes away and a mountain area that's about 45 minutes away.
4. Do a typical, enjoyable activity without rushing.
For example, instead of always feeling time pressure, allow yourself to sit down and drink a cup of tea slowly. Sit by your Christmas tree and enjoy it. Take a long, leisurely shower.
5. Do the under-15-minute activity that's languished on your to-do list and is draining your mental energy.
For example, until a few days ago, I had checks sitting around waiting to be deposited for about a month. I deposit them using my bank's mobile app. For weeks, I kept never getting around to it. But in the meantime, I was worrying about them getting lost or damaged.
Perhaps you've got a return you need to make, or some other job that will only take a few minutes. What do you keep thinking, "I need to do X (quick activity)" but it keeps getting bumped? Get it off your plate to relieve your mental stress. How does that feel?
6. Go for a walk.
This simple activity can change your outlook, boost your physical energy, and allow your mind to wander and decompress. If you don't go for walks because you don't count them as exercise, give it a try. (You can even try #7 while on a walk to boost your creativity.)
7. Rethink a perceived barrier.
Complete this sentence... "I can't do X [an enjoyable activity or work you'd like to get done] because Y [the perceived barrier]." Construct three different versions of this sentence involving different activities or barriers. Then, for at least one of the sentences you came up with, find a way to do the activity despite the barrier. Be creative and resourceful. Don't be perfectionistic.
You can also use the strategy of dropping a condition. You might think, "To do X, these three conditions need to apply."
Examples:
- "To go for a walk, it needs to be a sunny day" or
- "To go on a day trip, it needs to be a weekend" or
- "To do X, my partner needs to agree to do it with me."
Can you do the activity without that condition being met, even if it's less ideal?
Changing your thinking and problem-solving barriers to action is a creative skill. You can improve this skill with practice and with being willing to apply repeated, brief efforts to generate alternative thoughts and ideas.
