Modern-day living has become a great source of stress to many. Very much unlike generations ago when it wasn’t imperative to work long hours and people didn’t play the game of life harder than we do now. Our forebears didn’t have to contend with the constant streams of both work and personal demands sent via e-mail or cell phone. There was no cable TV to watch home, and no gym or other social clubs to join on weekends. Outside forces are always relentless in adding to our already miserably stressed state: political uncertainty, shaky economy, job insecurity, rising cost of living. The list is endless. Stress is not all bad. We need a certain amount of it to stay challenged, motivated and happy. Besides, we have different levels of stress tolerance.
However, too much stress will take a serious toll on both our emotional and physical well-being. Experts say that much of the stress in our lives is self-inflicted. While various forces influence us, we still decide how busy we’d want to be, what we opt to embrace, and what we tune out. We, ourselves, find the balance between work and play, between healthy and unhealthy stress. Basic to managing stress is good health. This equates to proper diet, regular exercise, and enough sleep.
Here are other ways to fine-tune your approach in reducing stress and reclaiming your life for good:
1. Know your daily and immediate priorities. So many people and things around us demand our attention: an important memo to write, your kids to pick up at school, an unexpected visitor at your office, your mother waiting for your call, your partner expecting dinner and a movie tonight, a critical presentation tomorrow. Pick out your priorities. Managing stress starts with knowing the more important matters in your daily life that deserve immediate attention.
2. Learn to say no. Once you have picked out your priorities, categorize the rest of the competing concerns and don’t let them overwhelm you. Which aspects and chores can you delegate? Which can you put off for the moment? Say no. Let go.
3. Identify your stressors. Avoid or resolve them. Your job is usually your main source of stress, but you don’t have the luxury of quitting anytime you want. Identify which aspect of your job stresses you the most. It is often not the work itself, but other factors like an annoying co-worker, office politics, a difficult work system or process. Find ways to minimize your dealings with the irksome workmate, turn a deaf ear to office politics, suggest another system – perhaps something you believe would be more efficient, or get additional training for yourself. If constantly hearing political issues wear you down, tune them out.
If money matters are a persistent worry, work on managing your finances better. If your current job is not paying you enough, decide if you can take the stress of a second job or scout for a better-paying one. Families and friends often add to our stress. Learn to manage their expectations and don’t promise more than you can deliver. Be honest and define clearly how much you can handle and give of your time, money, and effort.
4. Find time to relax. Devote an hour or more a week to an activity that relaxes you – a hobby, reading, having your nails done – and is not related to your work and family commitments. It may sound selfish to reserve some time for yourself when you hardly have enough time for your family, but you’ll be surprised at how relaxed you are and how your days go better when you spend at least an hour a day at your own thing.
5. Take a break from your gizmos. One of the fastest and most practical ways to get a much-needed downtime is to stay away from your laptop, cell phone and other gadgets momentarily. Try it for a few days, weeks, or as long as reasonably possible for you given your job and personal commitments. Notice the difference it could do to your stress-laden life
6. Re-examine your life goals. Sometimes, the hardest and most stressful times in our lives provide us the impetus to re-examine our goals. What do we live for? Why do we do the things we do? What are our dreams? Where do we want to go? Taking the time to examine our lives and take stock of our goals de-stresses and creates a sense of control, purpose, and satisfaction. Make your goals “formal.” Write them down and commit to them. Share them with a partner, friend, or family member. Seek their support. You may need to put your foot down and let those around you know that you are redefining or setting new personal goals and that you are taking charge of your life – with or without their support or approval. Stress can only affect you to the extent that you let it. By controlling your stress, you can reclaim your time and your life and start a new journey – a more enjoyable one.
#6 is a great piece of advice that is not always considered. Re-examining what’s important to you can take loads of stress away. Sometimes we get embroiled in continual striving for things that we don’t even want to begin with, if we take the time to figure that out. If you and your spouse and/or family sit down and really think about what’s important to each of you, you may be surprised at how much you’re doing that really isn’t necessary for true happiness.
Stress is an emotional and physical problem. By considering all of the points you’ve pointed out in this article we can all lessen our stress levels and live healthier and happier.
Determine from within your strength and weakness to make an immediate treatment whenever you feel blue. I know that there are some point in our life where we get so much errand but don’t have so much time to spend on.