Do you suffer from Overwhelm? Join the club. We are a fun and neurotic group!

We all have WAY more to do than we could possibly every accomplish in this lifetime (or maybe that's just how I feel?). Perhaps that's the whole point of reincarnation - to finish our To-Do lists?!

I found these great tips, tricks, and ideas to help us work better. (This great stuff comes from David Wax and Lifehack.org—with just a dash of my own spin on them.)

1) Most Important Tasks (MITs)

At the start of each day (or the night before) highlight the three or four most important things you have to do in the coming day. Do those first thing. If you get nothing else accomplished aside from your MITs, you've still had a pretty productive day. As author and all-around "goal-guru" Brian Tracey says, "You always have time to focus on your Most Important Tasks."

2) Big Rocks

These are the big projects or long term goals you’re working on at any given moment. Set aside time every day (even if just a few minutes) to move your big rocks forward. For a really cool visual on this, find the Steven Covey YouTube video on Big Rocks. It Rocks!

3) Inbox Zero

Decide what to do with every email you get, the moment you read it. If there’s something you need to do, either do it right then or add it to your to-do list and delete or file the email. If it’s something you need for reference, file it.

Empty your email inbox every day if you can. Hard to do...I know. I've done this once in the last year or so. It was not easy, but wow, what a feeling!!! Euphoria for an hour or so until the emails returned.

4) Wake up earlier/Stay up later

Add a productive hour to your day by getting up an hour earlier or staying up later — before or after everyone else starts imposing on your time. Know when you are at your best (whether morning or night) and while others are sleeping, use the quite to your advantage. Know which one is your thing. IF you are a morning person like me, getting in 30 extra minutes at the start of the day kicks the day into high gear.

5) One In, One Out

Avoid clutter by adopting a replacement-only standard. Every time you buy something new, you throw out or donate something old. For example: you buy a new shirt, you get rid of an old one. (Variation: One in, Two Out — useful when you begin to feel overwhelmed by your possessions.) There are some great articles written by awesome blogger, Leo Babauta of ZenHabits.net on minimalism. I highly recommend.

6) Brainstorming

The act of generating dozens of ideas without editing or censoring yourself. Lots of people use mind-maps for this: stick the thing you want to think about in the middle (a problem you need to solve, a theme you want to write about, etc.) and start writing whatever you think of. Build off of each of the sub-topics, and each of their sub-topics. Don’t worry about whether the ideas are any good or not — you don’t have to follow through on them, just get them out of your head. After a while, you’ll start surprising yourself with some really creative concepts. Sometimes a blank piece of paper is your best ally in getting more done.

7) Ubiquitous Capture

I had no idea what "ubiquitous" meant, but it sounded like a cool word that smart people would use. Dictionary.com to the rescue! It is fancy talk for, "existing or being everywhere..."

Always carry something to take notes with — a pen and paper, a smartphone, a stack of index cards, a mini tape recorder. Whatever suits you. Capture every thought that comes into your mind, whether it’s an idea for a project you’d like to do, an appointment you need to make, something you need to pick up next time you’re at the store, whatever. Review it regularly and transfer everything to where it belongs: a to-do list, a filing system, a journal, etc.

8) Get Better Sleep

Sleep is essential to health, learning, and awareness. Research shows that the body goes through a complete sleep cycle in about 90 minutes, so napping for less than that doesn't have the same effect that real sleep does (although it does make you feel better). Strive to get the right amount of sleep that your body needs (this may take some experimenting on your part). Learn to see sleep as a pleasure, not a necessary evil or a luxury. Also try to avoid eating 2 to 3 hours before going to bed. And stay away from TV or any other screens before going to sleep.

9) Work Spurts

Work in short spurts of 15 minutes, interrupted by a 1-2 minute break. Use a timer if necessary.

Do this 4 times an hour to stay on target without over-taxing your physical and mental resources. Spend those 1 to 2 minutes getting a drink, going to the bathroom, stretching, or staring out a window. But do not spend the break getting sucked into some other task or issue (Facebook, radio, news, TV, conversation, etc).

10) SMART goals

SMART is a rubric for creating and pursuing your goals, helping to avoid setting goals that are simply unattainable. It stands for: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Timely.

Some will use "Realistic" instead of "Relevant." I add "Relevant" to this equation because a SMART Goal needs to be "Relevant" to who you are and your values. If not, then it’s not very smart no matter how awesome the goal might be.

Got some tips of your own? Please share!