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How To Conquer Stress

How To Conquer Stress

Stress is often transitory. We have a rough day; we carry that with us for a certain period and recover the next day with a renewed perspective.  But sometimes, when you are on a deadline, faced with customer issues, or behind on projects, the stress can endure.  Stress in your personal life can exacerbate and extend your stress level.

Given our current environment with a global pandemic and the unknowns of a volatile job market, it seems that stress in our lives is inevitable. When everything is so out of our control—stress can be overwhelming.

 

How To Deal With New Stressors?

Most of us are equipped with daily tools to deal with stress. When we are at our highest functioning and have access to all our resources, getting rid of stress can be simple. However, right now, we are experiencing some unprecedented global events, and tomorrow may be filled with more significant challenges.

Let go, focus, do the work, and tomorrow will be a better day, right? Conquering stress requires a mindful, conscious effort. A return to normal is on the horizon, but it is not our present. Anxieties, concerns, and worries we thought were too dystopian to occur are happening right now.

Here are some tips on how to mindfully conquer stress:

  1. Complete small daily tasks. We have all been encouraged to get dressed in work attire each day, keep a stable routine, and attend to daily healthy habits. Remember: getting a task done is better than striving for “perfection” without any results. If you are unable to do something at 100%—do it at 50% or even 10%. Accomplishments, even small ones, are incremental measures of success that will encourage you to move forward.
  2. Be active and contribute to your community. Relying on a momentary sense of happiness is fleeting and temporary. As Ray Bradbury explains in Fahrenheit 451, changing a small part of the world thoughtfully and deliberately can bring purpose to your existence. It gives you something to do and something to make or contribute. These simple actions drive your sense of purpose and provide a perspective that you can overcome your worries.
  3. Write down your thoughts. When you carry around your worries in your mind, it leaves room for little else. By writing down your thoughts, your worries, your responsibilities, and your projects, you can provide yourself relief for your cognitive faculties to make plans for addressing the real challenges.
  4. Be present. Do not think about things out of your immediate circumstances—the world, society, or the economy. Those can wait for a moment. How are you going to be your present as your best self today? Develop a check-in system for yourself when you begin to be overwhelmed—breathe and turn your attention to your surroundings and the current moment.

 

Small Daily Tasks Reduce Stress

If you would like more encouragement, read over the following articles that provide unique insights into stress management.

How to Manage Your Stress When the Sky Is Falling, written by Michael Gervais, provides mental practices and tips to get us through these difficult times. The second article from Tara Parker-Pope, “How to be Better at Stress,” is an extensive look at stress—how to view it, how to approach it, and to realize at times it can even be useful for you.  

We hope you are persevering through this time. Yes, it is uncertain, chaotic, and a bit overwhelming. We hope these tips have provided a useful and grounding perspective, as even the most daily incremental change can greatly impact your everyday life.