Recently I attended a presentation on stress management in my office. I was very excited as for the last couple of weeks; I was completely stressed out owing to some hectic official projects. The workshop started with a two-minute meditation – we all closed our eyes and there was a pin drop silence in the hall.
The person who was taking the stress management class told us that there are subtle things in our day-to-day life that cause stress. For example, the electricity or phone bills will not stop coming, there will never be more hours in a day, and you cannot avoid your career or family responsibilities, which is always demanding with each passing day. Therefore, managing stress is all about taking charge of your thoughts, emotions, schedule and the environment where you spend most of the time. The ultimate goal of stress management workshop is to maintain a balanced life with time, work and relationships. In addition, it imparts resilience to hold up under pressure and meet challenges gracefully.
Stress management starts with identifying the sources of stress in your life. Well, this is not an easy task, as the true sources of stress often remain hidden and we always overlook the same. Some of the significant points I considered important are as follows:
- Identify the causes of stress
- How did you feel both physically and emotionally
- How did you act in response to stress
- What steps did you take to make yourself feel better
As I have mentioned above, most of the time we fail to identify the causes of stress. I would suggest you should first try to identify them or if you don’t succeed, at least make a guess. Once you identify the sources of stress, you can definitely find a better solution to cope up with the problem. The next step is the feelings – how did you feel physically and emotionally when you were actually stressed. What physical or emotional changes occurred and what impact did it make on you. The third point is very important and that is the action you took in response to stress. Many people face emotional depression and their attitude towards life dramatically changes in just a few minutes or a few hours. They often take life in a negative sense and make the situation worse than what one can ever imagine. Some of the unhealthy ways of coping with stress that people often indulge in are smoking, drinking, overeating, using pills, and sleeping too much, etc.
After attending the workshop I really felt good and more energetic than ever before. I learned some tricks that could help me keep away from the word stress. I am excited to actually implement them and spend a stress free life, always. In order to avoid unnecessary stress in our day-to-day life, I have learnt how to eliminate those stressors from my life, which are mentioned below:
- Learn to say no: Learn to know your limits and stick to them, always. Do not take extra work pressure in your personal as well as professional life.
- Ignore people who make you stress out: There are people who deliberately try to make you stressed out. Simply try to avoid them. If you cannot avoid them, you can definitely change the topic or limit the time you spend with such people.
- Express your feelings: Do not let something bother you – communicate your concerns with free mind. If you don’t express your feelings, resentment will build and the situation will remain the same.
- Be Assertive: Avoid taking a backseat in your life. Deal with problems boldly that come in your way. Always keep your points in front of the group you are engaged in a project or you confront in your daily life. In addition, time management is very important. Try to maintain a planner and stick to it.
