How to stay afloat during busy times

As this particularly busy semester for me is kicking off, I have taken a moment to think about what I can do to stay afloat. While I have written about this topic a number of times in the past, I figured it wouldn’t hurt to share what is working for me at this season of life.

So, here is what I am currently doing to stay afloat during a busy semester:

• Exercise: I go to the gym in the morning most days to get some movement in, and to make sure I can sleep well at night.
• Batch cooking: I haven’t made an elaborate stew or baked a nice cake in these past weeks, but everyone is fed and happy at home. I have focused on preparing different vegetables and grains that can be easily thrown together in salads, wraps, warm meals, bowls etc.
• Prioritize: Always good practice – but again I am leaning on my planning and prioritization to make sure the important tasks get done. I am also using a lot of scheduling of tasks to my calendar by turning emails into calendar invitations to myself to make sure I address these emails with the level of attention they deserve.
• Know when to push: There were a number of pending items that had me worried about not having enough time to finish them, so I set aside a few sessions in the evening after everyone at home had gone to sleep to tackle these. While not sustainable in the long term, a bit of a push here and there is something that helps me get my peace of mind back.
• Enjoy the trips: One of the perks of the job is the ability to travel, meet friends and colleagues, and learn new things along the way. So, instead of fretting about the week in which I will not get much writing done, I decided to instead focus on enjoying the trip while I get a chance to travel.

What do you do when you hit a busy time of the semester, or a particularly busy semester?