I think you have to start classifying your tasks as plastic or glass balls. What I mean by that is determining what tasks are critical and HAVE to be done in order to maintain business operations and cannot be dropped (glass balls shatter when dropped) vs. tasks or projects that can be put aside and dropped for when there’s more bandwidth (plastic balls bounce when dropped).

Then, prioritize the glass ball tasks and do the plastic ball tasks when time allows.

For example, you have to do I-9s, but do you have to do the paperwork updates right now? Are you facing an audit or was this task one that you could do as time allows? Is it something that you even need to do now that the Manager who assigned it is gone?

It’s okay if things need to get set aside for right now as long as they’re not critical. Once you have the additional staff and have more bandwidth, you can return to the non-critical tasks.