​

Welcome to Issue 84 of Clearly YOU! Every second Wednesday, I share fresh ideas to help you rise above the noise and communicate clearly, confidently, and with your real personality leading the way. Not a subscriber? Sign up now!

To me, OVERWHELMED is a very loud emotion.

When I feel overwhelmed (which seems to be my 2025 mascot), the voices in my head get high-pitched and argumentative.

They're like a raucous group of patrons in a very noisy bar.

They disagree. They digress. They talk over each other. And the longer they stay in the bar, the less logical everything becomes.

Overwhelmed Me loses the connection to my real voice. The one that speaks with authority (and a bit of charm), and connects with people in meaningful ways.

And once I lose that connection, I start doing crap like:

• posting generic foolishness on social platforms. Or worse… posting stuff that sounds like someone else. 🙄
• sending rambling emails to colleagues and clients.
• overthinking my offerings, what I do, who I am... the meaning of life.

Spoiler: None of this helps me. Professionally or personally.

Cool Quote

“You can’t stop the waves, but you can learn to surf.”

Jon Kabat-Zinn, scientist, meditation teacher, and author

Try This → Flail Freely For A Day

As a youngster, my middle daughter had BIG emotions. When she was overwhelmed, she’d explode. Tears. Shouting. Full drama.

After many failed attempts to head off these storms, I finally learned to stop trying to avoid it. (This is a hard thing to learn... just saying.)

Instead of cajoling or distracting her, I created space for her to have her moment. And guess what?

Once the tantrum ran its course, she always came back to centre. Calmness set in. She became her brilliant self again.

That’s when I started to see overwhelm differently - not as something to control or shut down, but as a state that just needs to run its course.

🌪️ The Overwhelm, as I call it, isn't just about having too much to do in a day. It’s about having too many thoughts at once. It’s the state of swirling and twirling in a vortex of too much everything.

And my advice on how to deal with it may seem counterintuitive (because let’s be honest, we all love being in control), but it works...

Surrender. Temporarily.

Set aside one full day to be totally, unapologetically overwhelmed.

Flail. Worry. Spiral. Make 27 to-do lists. Redo your LinkedIn profile again. Open 14 tabs and bounce between them like a caffeinated squirrel.

Let it all pour out. Give it space. Let your brain do what it’s trying to do: think about everything. Let chaos reign.

Then, when the workday is over... stop.

Put all those to-do lists in the garbage. Yes... seriously... throw them away.

Let whatever you've put into the world stay out there, at least for a while. No one reads the About section of your LinkedIn profile anyway.

Tidy your desk. Power down your electronics. LEAVE your workspace.

Take a shower. Go for a walk. Breathe.

Overwhelm is just your brain trying to carry everything at once.

When you let it try - just for a day - it tires itself out. It drops a few things because it simply can't hold SO MUCH.

Then. The next morning?

🌞 You wake up. You feel oddly better. The Overwhelm is gone, and that sense of connection to your real voice is back (or at least within sight). I promise.

Stuff Worth Sharing

After a day of letting The Overwhelm run its course, your body and brain might still feel a bit off-kilter. If you're looking for a gentle way to reset, I’ve got you.

👉 3 Breathing Exercises to Help You Focus, Think Creatively, and Calm Your Overwhelm​

They’re simple, short, and require zero prep. Just your breath and a moment of space.

Inbox-Worthy

I stumbled across a Kit Creator who’s clearly speaking my language: calm, practical, and zero fluff.

Anja's newsletter is full of small, doable things to help you stay steady when life gets loud. Think short pauses, simple resets, and little shifts that actually work (no incense or inspirational waterfalls required).

For the Word Nerds

You may have noticed I referred to “The Overwhelm” like it’s a thing. That’s a real linguistic move called nominalization: turning a verb, adjective, or other part of speech into a noun.

Why do this?​
Sometimes, naming a feeling makes it more tangible. The Overwhelm creates a character out of the chaos - something I can observe, talk back to, even shove off a cliff (if only in my imagination).

It brings emotion out of the shadows and into focus. And in writing, it adds punch.

For example, instead of saying “I'm worrying about a lot of things,” try:
​“The worries won’t shut up.”

Or on a more positive note, “I'm so happy when I'm outside” might become:
​“Being outside gives me the Happy-s.”

Yes, I know. The capital H and the -s are a bit of a cheat. But I stand by my choices.

Your turn… What can you nominalize? 📧 Send me your coolest new expressions. I can't wait to hear them.

Thanks for reading. Back in your inbox July 30th. Until then: ​ 📣 If your professional voice is feeling a little meh, check out my 1:1 services. Together, we can definitely UP your game. ​ ☕️ Prefer DIY? Grab my free course. One short email lesson, delivered daily for 7 days. Easy peasy. Practical. Maybe even fun!