How Do You Handle Stress?
If you’re like me, you are a worrier – someone who can relate to just about any stressful situation. I am not proud of this, nor am I bragging about it. It’s just a fact. It’s who I am. I take pride in my work and in my personal accomplishments, as well. It is important for me, not just to get the job done, but to be the best at it!
This is the time of year, in our business, where we are so busy that we sometimes forget about what’s good for us. Yes, the job must get done and yes, expectations are high. But the bottom line is this…if you can’t control your level of stress, you can’t control anything. And for me, as a control freak, that is the worst! 🙂 If you are not doing what is good for you, you are good for no one….not even yourself.
Keeping life balance is important. While most of us put all things before ourselves, we must remind ourselves to keep things in check. Managing stress is a critical part to being able to perform optimally, personally and professionally. So while it seems like there is no time for lunch or no time to take a quick break, you must find small ways of doing it! It doesn’t have to be anything more than just taking a quick walk away from your desk or the office. Sometimes what I like to do is offer to go pick up coffee or ice cream for everyone in the office, just to mentally take a quick break.
You need it. Do it.
It is so important to maintain focus and balance to be able to function day to day. Our world moves at the speed of lightning now and most days I feel like I simply can’t keep up! Emails have become equivalent to snail mail. Facebook and texts have replaced face to face conversations and have given us the illusion that we are in touch without actually being “in touch”. It’s crazy! But it works. It’s all I have time for these days, it seems. Our attention spans keep getting shorter and shorter….
Faster and faster. Technology is moving us to a level of frenzy that is almost unbelievable.
I think back on the days of my childhood. Riding bikes – miles – across town. No means of communication except to ring someone’s door bell or call from your house phone or maybe a payphone, in an emergency. Playing – actually playing outside until the streetlights came on – then it was time to go home. My parents didn’t drive me places – I got to where I wanted to go on my bike, by bus or by foot! No checking in/ No tracking devices. We just figured stuff out on our own. Wow.
I think I just proved my point about maintaining focus. I was interrupted 3 times while typing this and look where my train of thought ended up! I started out talking about stress and ended up in one of those “back in my day..” rants. Hmmmm. It says a lot.
Keep it simple. Keep lists so you don’t forget. Smile. Laugh. Work Hard. Have fun. Be kind. Be good to yourself. Practice random acts of kindness. These small things all make a difference.
In the meantime, here are some ideas to help reduce stress:
http://www.webmd.com/balance/guide/reducing-stress-tips
And I’m sure you all know that “stressed” is “desserts” spelled backwards. So on that note, I’m going to go grab some lunch!
Have a great day and keep smiling!!