From one stressed-out person to another, I know how it feels, and believe me when I say there are many reasons one feels stressed. Coping with life, and carrying the problems that may or may not belong to you can take away the little joy and happiness that you once held dear as you start your day. Nevertheless, why do we stress so much and allow the stress to weigh us down? Ever heard the saying, “Stress is all in the mind,” well then, what is bugging you anyway?
There are several ways to manage stress, which will eventually lead to completely removing stress from your life if you are strong-willed. I have attempted to break this up into a 6-step process for you and I promise it is not going to overwhelming on your mind or your body.
- Acknowledge stress is good
Make stress your friend! Weird I know but it works. Based on the body’s natural “fight or flight” response, that burst of energy will enhance your performance at the right moment. I’ve yet to see a top sportsman totally relaxed before a big competition. Use stress wisely to push yourself that little bit harder when it counts most.
- Learn from the best
When people around are losing their head, who keeps calm? What are they doing differently? What is their attitude? What language do they use? Are they trained and experienced?
Figure it out from afar or ask them your questions directly on how they are handling their stress. No point in reinventing the wheel, right?
- Practice socially acceptable deep breathing
This is something I’ve learned from my gym partner: You can trick your body into relaxing by using a deep breathing technique. Breathe in slowly and count to 7 then breathe out and count to 11. Repeat the 7-11 breathing until your heart rate slows down; your sweaty palms dry off (if you have sweaty palms) and things start to feel less hazy. YASSSS! De-stress 101 is that simple!
- Give stressful thoughts the red light
Did you know it is possible to tangle yourself up in a stress knot without the help of anyone but yourself. It starts with the 100 scenarios syndrome: “If this happens – then that might happen and that other thing might happen – and then that might happen – and so on!” To be honest, most of these things never happen, so why waste all that energy worrying needlessly? My best friend asks me this all the time and I am yet to have an answer.
So, give stressful thoughts the red light and stop them in their tracks. What is the worst-case scenario? Okay so something might go wrong. Instead of worrying about what “could” go wrong. You could think about how to prevent it, if you absolutely need to be thinking of anything at that moment or better yet let things take its course.
- Know your trigger points
Presentations, interviews, meetings, giving difficult feedback, tight deadlines … My heart rate is racing just writing these down!
Make your own list of stress trigger points. Be very specific. Is it only panel interviews that get you worked up? Does talking in front of 4 people make you more stressed out than talking in front of 10+ people? Did you drink too much coffee?
Knowing what causes you stress is powerful information, this way you can take action to make it a less stressful experience. Do you need to learn some new skills? Do you need extra resources? Do you need to switch to decaf?
- Burn the candle at one end
Lack of sleep, poor diet and no exercise wreaks havoc on both our body and mind. Kind of obvious, but worth mentioning as this is often ignored as a stress management technique. Listen to your parents when they say, “Don’t burn the candle at both ends!
So having stress can be a total drag, but that should not hinder us from finding the inner peace of mind that we have wanted for a long time. In any case, one could always go to the Bahamas and bask under the summer sun.
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