There will always be times when you feel like your life is going off-track. You have a lot to do, you need to make time for friends and family, you barely have time to organize your life and work goals are stepping up to the next level. You have this feeling that you are forgetting something, constantly. Your mind just feels blank. And even if you have your reminder and to-do list, you still never feel like you are getting anything done.

There’s a reason why everybody is more stressed in the last few months of the year, it’s because, as the year’s end draws closer, the goals are getting bigger. It is suddenly beginning to dawn on us that we haven’t achieved our resolution (for another year!) and we are trying to do too much. In between sorting out your personal life and staying on top of work (and every other thing), it feels like you are being pulled and pushed every which way and can’t get yourself back on track. But you have to take back control of your life and get it together in around half an hour. Yes, it can be done and it will be the best thing you have ever done!

• Start by learning how to organize everything 

You’re going to need an organiser; whether the notepad version or the digital application type. Write down everything you do daily on this. This will help you know the things you need to stop doing and the things to continue doing. It will also help you manage your time properly.

•  Get a sheet of paper and plot your pain points

Sit down and figure out which areas of your life feel chaotic and unorganized. Get a sheet of paper and start writing down areas of your life you want to focus on. Using a highlighter pen, divide the paper into four corners of my paper and write down, work, family, health, and house, and then underneath each point, add the ‘pain points’ that were stopping you from being organized.

• Plan your work week first

Start with the most chaotic area. It usually is work. Start from the very beginning with your goals and then added all your ‘to-dos’ in order of urgency. Knowing which tasks have been hanging over your head really helps you feel a lot more relaxed.

• Take the effort out of the things you want to do

Once you have planned out your work week, you will feel some of the pressure coming off. You will find that you have been trying to do way too many things; you want to be healthy, make time to work out, complete all my work goals and make time for friends and family. We all wish we could be perfect, but you can’t do all that without losing your mind.

So, start with your health goals, cook meals from scratch to make sure you are eating healthier. Automating these things will take the pressure off and give you more time to focus on other things. So, signing up to a meal subscription service can take the effort out of grocery shopping while keeping your meals healthy and delicious!

• Create spreadsheets for everything you’re planning

This might be a little extreme for some people but it works. Take one hour to try and take the pain out of all that you need to do. So, for example, planning out upcoming birthdays and making a list of potential gifts, breaking down the party planning, and house decor, into actionable lists with deadlines. As long as you have done certain things on your list by that date, you can relax.