Stress Solutions
5 Habits of Highly Relaxed People
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You’re probably too busy: Too many deadlines, too many activities and too many people demanding more of your time. We should treat stress just like the warning light on our dashboard–when it comes on, it’s a good idea to pull over and figure out the problem. Read on for the latest stress relief techniques:
Take five. Or ten! Taking a few minutes out of a stressful day can go a long way. Take a short walk and practice deep breathing, read something inspirational (not the news), or write a few lines in your online journal about how you feel. You’ll find your outlook improves faster than just pushing through the stress.
Take it easy on yourself. Negative self-talk adds pressure and guilt, but being kind to yourself is scientifically proven to give you positive psychological health. Everybody has tough days, and understanding that will help you relieve some of the burden.
Think about progress, not perfection. Research psychologist Dr K. Anders Ericsson of theUniversity of Florida says time is the key to mastering any skill. Once you find out the average time it takes to master your given subject, start the clock. Track your time and improvement will come as a matter of course.
Make routine, routine. Calendar your activities. There are only so many hours in a day! Subtract sleep, meals, regular exercise and family time from your 24-hour day before you schedule; you may discover there truly aren’t enough hours in the day and you can feel better about saying “no” to yours or someone else’s unrealistic expectations.
Half full… or not. Not everyone is an optimist, and that’s the way it’s supposed to be according to the psychologists and authors of Focus: Use Different Ways of Seeing the World for Success and Influence. Promotion focused optimists, are dominant in seeking opportunity; while prevention focused defensive-pessimists are dominant in minimizing loss or avoiding danger. One isn’t any better than the other, but being forced to adopt your opposite style can create more stress, so whichever you happen to be, embrace it!
Courtest of YouMagazine
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