Figure out the source of your problem
to remove stress before it even occurs. If you modify your life and alter
certain habits, you can prevent most of the stress in your life.
I’m not saying that you will never
experience a stressful day or time because life comes with challenges.
Nonetheless, I do think that most of the stress in our lives is unnecessary,
and that it can be eliminated by taking some simple steps.
Identify stressors:
Take 10 minutes to think about what causes you to stress out during the
day. What people, activities, things cause stress in your life?
Eat healthy: Become healthier and a
major source of stress will disappear. What you eat affects your mood.
Exercise: Exercising helps relieve the stress accumulation. It gives you some silent time to contemplate
and relax, and it makes you more fit. A fitter person is better equipped to
handle stress.
Eliminate unnecessary
commitments: We all have many commitments in our life,
starting with work but also including commitments related to our significant
others, home, family, religion, and hobbies. Consider each of them, the amount
of stress they deliver, and the value you get out of them. Take steps today to
remove the ones that stress you out the most.
Procrastination: Find ways to take care of stuff now so things don’t pile up
and overwhelm you.
Disorder: Get rid of chaos and clutter! Take time to get things in your
life organized, starting with your desk, your pantry and closets.
Late:
When we rush
to get ready and rush to get somewhere, we end up stressing out the whole time
about looking bad and being late. Learn the routine of being early, and this
stress vanishes. Make a conscious effort to start getting ready earlier and to
leave earlier.
Control: We cannot control people or situations. Learn to let go, and accept the way that
other people do things, and accept what happens in different situations. The
only thing you can control is yourself — work on your attitude and reactions.
Multitasking: When we try to work on multiple tasks at the same time, it
slows us down from actually focusing on a task and completing it. Learn to work on one thing at a time.
Avoid difficult people: You know who they are.
Just cut them out of your life.
Cancel Events: Create more open
periods of time in your life. It’s not necessary to schedule every minute of
our lives.
Slow your roll: Instead of rushing through life, learn to take things slow.
Enjoy your food, enjoy the people around you, and enjoy the environment.
Help others: Helping others, whether volunteering in your community or
just making an effort to be compassionate towards people you meet, not only
gives you joy, it somehow lowers your stress level.
Relax during the day: It’s essential to take
small breaks during your work day. Stop what you’re doing, get up, stretch and
walk around. Go outside and enjoy the fresh air. Talk to someone you love.
Be grateful: Learn to be grateful for what you have, for the people in
your life, and see it as a gift. With this view on life, your stress will go down
and happiness will go up.
AND 1 not-so-simple step ….
I hope that you choose to start creating new habits today so that you can UP YOUR JOY!!
~ J. Lynn
