If we are given a choice, most of us would choose to have a stress-free life. However, it turns out that we need a certain degree of stress. We experience eustress or the positive stress when we start on something new.
Preparing for your marriage, buying a new house or even having a baby might cause you to stress, but it excites you and helps you to stay motivated. At last, you will feel good about your life because you are confident to cope with life challenges.
Yet, stress can backfire where we experience anxiety. Situations such as overloaded job demands, conflicts with your partner and financial struggles can make you feel unable to cope with the situation. You think that you do not have enough physical ability or mental strength.
Distress or negative stress will not only affect your performances negatively, it also affects your productivity, physical and mental health.
Besides, you will constantly feel exhausted without any reason. You will also experience an emotional breakdown where you yell at your children for their tiny mistakes.
If you are now experiencing any negative and stressful life events, you must now tackle the anxiety of stress before it is too late.
No more saying ‘I am ok’ when you are not! You need to learn to manage your stress.
Why Is It Important to Manage Your Stress?
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Here’s my personal experience where I realised I need to learn to manage my stress. I used to be a YES-person where I could not turn down any job given.
As the jobs piled up, I became anxious and worried that I might not complete all of them on time. What worsened the situation was that I did not know how to ask for help.
Eventually, it affected my emotions and I became short-tempered and impatient. I also experienced burnout and suffer from insomnia along with frequent flu.
That’s when I decided to put a stop for ignoring my stress. I realised I am not fine with my current situation. I needed a change.
After managing my stress, I became less anxious and more cheerful. I was not reactive to any situations where I remained calm to look for solutions. My overall personal well-being had improved as time passed.
After improving my personal well-being, I became more confident at work. I realised that it is not a sign of weakness to ask for help.
I also learnt to delegate jobs among my colleagues and to say ‘No’ politely to turn down some unnecessary work. No more staying late at the office for work and so no more burnout!
What changes did I apply to my daily life to manage my stress? Read on and make sure you nail down these three practical solutions to survive from your stressful daily living.
Don’t miss out on how to reduce stress if you are working from home featured on our website.
3 Practical Solutions to Survive a Stressful Life
#1: Map out things to be done according to the importance
This is not just about writing and crossing your to-do list. You need to take a step forward from your to-do list to reduce your distress. Here’s why. You will never have enough time to do everything you have to do!
So, you need a tool so that you have some control over activities that really make a difference in your life. You need to stop doing things that are wasting your precious time.
This is how you can select and start your day with the most important task – the ABCDE method by the famous motivational speaker, Brian Tracy. The ABCDE method is a simple yet powerful method to help you to set your priorities.
First, you should list down everything you have to do for the next day on a paper. Then, place an A, B, C, D, or E next to each item on your list before you start on any task.
- ‘A’ items are the most important tasks that you must do or else you will face serious consequences.
- ‘B’ items are tasks that you should do with mild consequences.
- ‘C’ items are tasks that are nice to do with zero consequences.
- ‘D’ items are tasks that you should delegate to others and
- ‘E’ items are tasks that you should stay away from.
The rule of this method is that you should never do any other items before you complete the ‘A’ items. With this, you will be able to focus on things that you are passionate of.
Remember, we often feel tired not because we’ve done too much, but because we’ve done too little of what sparks a light in us.
#2: Determined to have an organised life
Besides setting your priorities, you should also have an organised life consistently throughout a lifetime. You can start by having a healthy lifestyle.
Instead of lying on the couch to watch movies, you should look for other beneficial stress-relieving activities such as aerobic exercises and meaningful hobbies such as drawing, cycling and hiking. These activities relieve your stress by providing more positive emotions into your daily lives.
Never settle on fast food or junk food to reduce your stress. Instead, have regular healthy diets that can relieve your stress in a delicious way.
As stress also comes from financial struggles, you need to ensure that you and your family have a stable financial situation. Start simple by spending below your means.
Be determined to stay away from buying unnecessary items and do expenses recording. With this, you can reflect and improve your spending habits.
When you have some savings, make sure you also invest your money so that you can have your money to work for you! As time passes, you will certainly gain the financial security that you long for.
#3: Seek support and assistance
We know when we need help; we just ignore and push down the fact that we need it! So, whenever you get the feelings of exhaustion and anxiety, ask for support.
You can ask your colleagues for any assistance whenever you are stuck in your job. You can ask your family members for support whenever you find it difficult to juggle between your career and your family matters.
You can ask your friends for advice whenever you are venturing into new areas you are not familiar with.
The only thing that you need to do is just ask! Ask and you will get what you need. Most people just assume that it is too embarrassing to ask others for help. This shows that they are weak.
The truth is totally the opposite! You become stronger when you are willing to ask.
Add More Eustress Into Your Life Recipe
When you are committed to saying ‘NO’ to a stressful life, you will find yourself emotionally resilient towards any challenges and obstacles.
While reducing distress in your life through these practical solutions, we also hope that you can look forward to any new life events to experience more positive stress.
So, let’s welcome new learning and new experiences for more eustress in our life!