Feeling overwhelmed by too much to do?

Maybe not everything on your to-do list deserves a place there.

Here are three ideas to help simplify your work life.

1. You don't have to read everything.

If you feel overwhelmed by the sheer volume of reading you do for your job, then this is a great place to start.

What are you reading? Newspapers? Magazines? Blogs? Websites? Reports?

Which sources provide you with the best, most relevant information you need to do your job?

Focus on these and consider dropping the other publications or sites from your reading pile.

Several years ago, I stopped reading the papers and focused on a couple of online sources for scanning the news. It's made no difference to my business life and saved me oodles of time.

2. You don't have to be on every social network.

To use social media effectively, you have to invest time listening, engaging and providing useful, relevant content. (My previous articles How to Create a Social Media Schedule – Part 1 and How to Create a Social Media Schedule – Part 2 can help you do this.)

So trying to be on every social media site will be a huge drain on your time.

Instead, choose the social media sites that are most effective for you. These will be sites where your customers already congregate.

If your business is Business-to-Consumer, then Facebook may work well for you. If it's Business-to-Business, then you may prefer Twitter.

Review your analytics and identify the places that are most strategic for you.

Then spend your social media time there.

3. You don't have to accept every client.

If your biggest challenge is getting a start or paying the bills, then you may decide you need to take any client that comes your way. But if you're suffering overwhelm and reading this article, then I suspect you have more pressing concerns.

If this is the case, take a moment to review the type of client you want.

You may identify ideal clients by company size or industry type or even gut feel. But do think about indicators so that you can recognise clients you don't want.

And say no to these clients.

They're usually the ones that take more time, energy and effort, and provide fewer emotional and professional rewards.

Explain that you don't think you're the right person to help them and be prepared to suggest someone else they can work with. If the fit isn't right, then you'll be doing both of you a favour.

What we read, where we invest our social media time and whom we work with are decisions that are worth reviewing on a regular basis.

They can save time and energy and greatly simplify our business lives.

Do you need to take another look at your life and simplify it?