How to Experience Freedom When You Are Overwhelmed

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How to Experience Freedom When You Are Overwhelmed

Many times, these episodes are born out of the things rattling around in my mind. I was recently on the fringes of becoming overwhelmed with the amount of things that needed my attention. I found my footing quickly, by God’s grace, and I wanted to share a portion of the framework that helped me to do so.

In order to do this well, I want to describe the sensation of being overwhelmed to you and see if it is something you’ve ever experienced. It feels like walls around you are slowly pressing in on you. Remember the scene from Star Wars where Luke, Han Solo and Princess Leia are in the trash compactor room? The walls are slowly but steadily moving in, making the room smaller and creating a sense of panic. Do you ever have that sensation when facing a big project or weighty ongoing responsibility? It is a suffocating feeling, one that feels like the collar of your shirt is being pulled tighter and tighter. What can we do when we find ourselves in this situation?

Remember that you can only do one thing at a time. Perhaps there are a few exceptional individuals who are able to effectively do more than one thing at a time. But I firmly believe that if you want to do something well, it serves your full attention. This truth can be a powerful antidote to feeling overwhelmed. No matter how big my to-do list is, I can only do one thing at a time. No matter how high the expectations are from my co-workers and my customers, I can only do one thing at a time. No matter how much I would like to get done, I can only do one thing at a time. Embrace your limitations and it can free you from the stress of trying to do more than you are capable of doing. This may sound like I’m pouring cold water on your potential – but I think I’m actually pouring refreshing water on souls that are empty and exhausted from trying to get more performance out of the machine than is humanly possible. You are not Superman and admitting that on the front end can save you a great deal of disappointment and heartache.

Remember that you cannot control outcomes. At the end of the day, I cannot control the amount of money this bank makes in 2025. I can affect the outcome, but I cannot control it. There are a host of complex factors beyond my control. The strength of the economy is beyond my control. The actions of my competitors are beyond my control. The regulatory environment is beyond my control. I can respond to these things, but I cannot say, “I want the bank to make X number of dollars this year” and ensure that it will happen. But as human beings, we want to control outcomes. Whatever our desires might be for our businesses or for our personal lives, we want to speak them into existence. We do not have that power. You may be incredibly intelligent, talented, and skillful. Those traits do not guarantee specific outcomes. To think otherwise is just downright arrogant. To think that you have that power is setting yourself up to be humbled somewhere in your future. I plead with you not to make that mistake.

Remember that you can affect outcomes. Up to this point, you might have been saying, “Well Chad, you sure are a Debbie Downer. You’re basically saying we have no say in our futures, and we just need to put our ambitions on the back burner. Aim low, Chad. That’s basically what you are saying.” That’s actually not at all what I’m saying. If you can accept these first two truths, I believe it frees you to do this third activity with more freedom and more vigor. Although I can’t determine how much money the bank is going to make this year, I can affect how much it is going to make. I can invest my time in our team’s development so they are all getting better at their respective roles. I can build new relationships with potential new clients. I can spend time ensuring we are taking great care of the people that already do business with us. There is an endless number of things I can do to affect a positive outcome. Football coaches often call this “controlling the controllables.” Players can’t control how fast they are, but they can determine how many sprints they are going to run each day. Players can’t control whether they are going to make the game winning field goal, but they can control how many times they practice kicking the ball through the uprights. Players can’t control the score on the scoreboard, but they can ensure they are doing their absolute best on every play of which they are a part. So, focus on what you can do to move yourself toward desirable outcomes. This will take wisdom to determine what these activities are. And then it will take discipline to consistently do these activities over and over again. You have choices. And you want to make sure that your next choice is affecting an outcome that you hope to see come to fruition.

Remember to keep the main thing in the moment the main thing. If we can only do one thing at a time, we want the next thing that we do to be the most important thing that needs to be done at that moment. If I am at home at night and am catching up on work email and my 9-year-old daughter walks in and says she wants to talk, I need to choose the best thing in that moment. I’ll give you a hint, it’s not checking my email. Life is a series of moments, and we want to have clarity on what matters most in that particular moment. Speaking of my 9-year-old, she loves to play the game, “Would you rather.” Normally she gives me a choice of two really undesirable things, and she’s asking me to choose the least bad option (like whether to eat onions or sweet potatoes). Honestly, I don’t know if I could do either one of those. In some ways, each moment is a “would you rather” but on the positive side. Would you rather work on this report or reach out to this valuable client? Maybe you’ll have time today to do both, but if you could only do one, which do you choose? That’s the next thing that you do. In some ways this is a time triage. It is surveying the landscape of everything you could do with the next moment and choosing the one thing that is the highest impact toward the outcome you are looking to accomplish.

This framework has been life changing for me. So how does it play out for me? As I’ve shared before, I’m a Christian. After nearly collapsing under the weight of things I couldn’t control in 2011, today I rarely find myself becoming overwhelmed. These truths have helped me to do what I can and to trust the Lord in what I can’t. It has helped me take on the responsibilities I should have and let the Lord shoulder the responsibilities that are His to bear. It’s helped me be freed, in some ways, toward limitless potential because I know my role. It’s helped me to figure out how to be content and ambitious at the same time. I have some big audacious goals. Most people who know me know that I’m incredibly ambitious. I’m going to do what I can to contribute to those goals, and I’m going to work my tail off to accomplish them. But I’m also going to be content. I’m going to leave the end result – the outcome – in my Lord’s hands. He knows what is best. What a comfort. What a freeing truth.

If the next best thing on your list in the find a great bank to work with, we can help you with that one. Start your financial conversation with us today at foundationbank.org. It really will be worth your time. We hope you’ll subscribe to this podcast to it in your favorite podcast app and share it on social media. Until our next episode, God bless you.

-President Chad P. Wilson, CFP

Today’s episode of “Money Matters” was written and recorded by President Chad P. Wilson of Foundation Bank/McKenzie Banking Company on October 07, 2025. This episode does not constitute financial advice. Please consult a financial professional to discuss your specific needs. Any rates mentioned are subject to change and are accurate as of the recording date. Foundation Bank/MBC is an Equal Housing Lender, Member FDIC.