3 Ways I Manage My Time Anxiety

Along with other forms of anxiety (I’m an anxious person, y’all 😅), I experience a lot of time anxiety. If you often feel rushed, overwhelmed, or panicky, you might be experiencing it too.

I had a moment of awareness about four years ago. I was working as a full-time blogger back then and I realized that I had a very “rushed vibe” throughout most days. I was trying to get everything done as quickly as possible. It was not a pleasant experience! 

While I still have days where I get this feeling, it’s much more rare. It took me a long time to discover and fully integrate strategies to help me manage my time anxiety. I’m excited to share the three ways I did it.  

But first!

We need to define time anxiety.

Official sidenote: This article is not meant to be medical advice. 

What is time anxiety? 

Neuroscientist Anne-Laure Le Cunff (whom I intensely admire!) describes a few different types of time anxiety, but the one we’re dealing with today refers to the fear of wasting your time. 

This form of time anxiety is an obsession with spending your time in the most meaningful, efficient, or productive way possible. It leaves you feeling rushed, overwhelmed, or panicky.

When I’m experiencing time anxiety, I find myself constantly thinking, “What’s next? What’s next?” I’m not in the moment. I’m trying to think three steps ahead so I can be ultra-efficient and get more done. 

It causes me to rush through my life like it’s a to-do list to be checked off instead of my one life that is meant to be experienced. 

Have you felt this too?

Here’s what has worked for me: 

Tip #1: If you have nowhere to be, don’t look at the clock.

When I’m experiencing time anxiety, I’m constantly watching the clock. Even on days when I have nothing going on. 

All this does is make me feel like time is passing too quickly—like I’m running out of time to relax or get chores done. 

But here’s the thing: unless I have a meeting or an appointment, it doesn’t really matter what time it is. The main purpose of clocks is to help people get together at particular times. If I have nowhere to be, it doesn’t matter what time it is! 

(I do have times when I like to go to bed and wake up. And I use time blocking to create my schedule for the week. I consider those self-imposed “places to be” and I do use alarms or look at the clock to stay on schedule. I’m mainly talking about watching the clock on weekends when I have downtime.)

It might be harder than you realize to not look at the clock. I’ll often flip my phone over so the screen is facedown to avoid seeing the time. The only other clock in our house is on the stove and I will literally avert my eyes when I walk into the kitchen. Ridiculous? Maybe! But it has helped me.

I’ll also remind myself, “It doesn’t matter what time it is right now.” This is my cue to choose what I want to do and get immersed in that activity. 

Tip #2: Rely on alarms.

Not looking at the clock might make you worry about missing something. This is where alarms come in.  

I live by my alarms! 

I set them for everything so I don’t have to remember stuff. Checking the laundry, putting the trash out, going to bed…

If I need to leave for an afternoon appointment, I’ll set an alarm for when I need to get ready to leave—not just for when I actually need to leave.

The opposite of time anxiety is being fully present in the moment. And by setting alarms, I can be in the moment without worrying about what’s next. 

Tip #3: Practice intentional thoughts.

Since your thoughts create your emotions (and anxiety is an emotion), it’s impossible to fully tackle time anxiety without working on your thoughts! 

This lesson took me a long time to learn. I tried to release my time anxiety with calendars, to-do lists, and prioritization. Not that those can’t be beneficial. But you’ll never feel fully relaxed and in the moment until you manage your mind. 

My go-to thought is, “I can relax and be in this moment. There is enough time.” 

At first, that thought didn’t feel believable to me, so I practiced thinking, “It’s possible that I can relax and be in this moment. There is enough time.”

For intentional thoughts to work, they need to feel good to you and be believable. The thoughts that work best for me might not do it for you. 

Here are some of my favorite intentional thoughts for releasing time anxiety:

• I have plenty of energy when I go slow.
• I only need to focus on one thing at a time to succeed.
• This is exactly what I am supposed to be doing right now.
• I will take a deep breath and focus on the single next step.
• I am in control of how I spend my energy today.
• I don’t have to earn rest.
• My life is not a to-do list to be checked off.

Almost every woman I talk to experiences some amount of time anxiety. Let me know in the comments if this resonates with you. 

By not looking at the clock, setting alarms, and practicing intentional thoughts, my time anxiety has been greatly reduced.