Just like anything else, stress can be misinterpreted. Not all stress is bad for you. We’re constantly wanting to live a stress free life when that’s not a realistic outcome.
Many people are surprised when I tell them that there’s good stress and bad stress. Good stress is known as eustress, which is positive stress that improves your performance, energizes, motivates, and excites you throughout the day. Bad stress is known as distress, which is negative stress that creates anxiety, decreases performance, and could lead to mental and physical problems.
Below are tips on how to manage both types of stress:
1. Take at least 30 minutes each day to unplug.
You can make the rules around this as long as you make it at least 30 minutes each day. I’ll admit it, it’s easier said than done. Instead of reaching for your phone, meet with a friend or a family member for a conversation. Instead of turning on the TV for 30 minutes, grab a book for a quick read. Take some time for yourself each day to unplug from technology, even if it’s just 30 minutes.
2. Take time for reflection.
Depending on your schedule, try to find a way to reflect on your day. This can be in any form that works with you, whether it’s having a daily journal (which everyone suggests, but who really does?), or even just thinking about your day at the end of each day.
Without deep reflection, one knows from daily life that one exists for other people. — Albert Einstein
Sometimes doing this daily is tough, especially with all of our busy schedules. The beauty of this tip is that you need to make this work for you, not using a way that works for other people. I tend to reflect on a weekly basis every Sunday because I like to review my week and plan for my upcoming week. That may work for some people, but you need to find what specifically works for you.
3. Learn to say “no.”
There’s times where we all say “yes” and we don’t realize what we’ve even really said “yes” to because we’re just so used to saying it. Sometimes we need to learn to take care of ourselves first and the best way to do so is by saying “no.” I’m not saying that you should say “no” to everything, but sometimes saying “yes” can cause negative stress that leads to lower productivity. We usually know the difference, but we still tend to say “yes.” Embrace your ability to say “no” because that simple two letter word can save you from some moments of distress.
4. Sleep is your friend. Get a good nights rest.
No surprise here. Sleeping is a form of self-care that we take for granted. The recommended hours of sleep are between 6–8 hours a night, but our bodies can actually survive with less hours or even more. Find out how many hours of sleep works with your body that gives you the most energy and helps you get through the day feeling alive.
I admit, there are days that we sleep much less hours than what we normally need in order to fully function, but by building the awareness of that being a temporary situation, this will help you be more resilient throughout your day. Being stressed is already a lot on the body, but being stressed and tired can have a much worse effect.
5. Use your calendar. It’s on your phone — you have no excuse.
The digital calendar was built for a reason. A digital calendar helps reduce stress by plopping all your events and plans into one universal place. A digital calendar is a fancy word for your email system’s calendar. Find out which email calendar system works for you so that you can manage your schedule more efficiently. I don’t know how I used to make plans with my colleagues, friends and family just based off memory. It’s so much easier now that I’ve universally stored all of this information in one place. Take advantage of the free things in life and manage your calendar through a digital system.
The moment my colleague or I reach out to each other and say “Hey let’s grab coffee!” — I follow-up with “When? I’ll find put it on our calendars!” I then quickly throw it on the calendar after we choose the date and time so that it’s off my mind. My calendar keeps me aware of what I have planned for the week because it’s already on my Google Calendar.
6. Understand and accept stress for what it is. Stress is a part of life.
I can write about stress management all day and read all the self-help books in the world, but stress is still a real thing. Stress isn’t something that you just push away. Everyone deals with stress, but identifying it and understanding it, is one of the best ways to reduce it.
There’s two words I’d like to share with you, self-awareness and self-regulation. Self-awareness is being able to understand your emotions and how they effect others, whereas self-regulation is being able to control how you react to situations and others. Over the years I’ve been able to practice and develop this skill. We’re thrown choices, options and stressors everyday. The difference between dealing with stress and overcoming it is how you react to it.
Next time a stress invoking event comes up, I want you to quickly look at all sides of the situation and practice using positive self-talk. Positive self-talk is being able to tell yourself that this is a mere temporary obstacle that you will soon overcome.
7. Don’t be afraid to take some time to yourself.
Every single day, we are on the run. We’re on the run to work, to meet a colleague for lunch, to grab coffee with a friend, to meet family for dinner plans, to rush to the gym before it closes, to shower and get ready for bed and work the next day. We’re always on the run and forget to take time for ourselves to recharge. Recharging is a real thing. By taking time to recharge from all kinds of stress, this helps you be more creative and wonder about the endless possibilities that exist in our world. Stress tends to close off our mind from dreaming and wondering. Taking time to yourself opens your mind to different experiences and opportunities.
I was recently in Arizona for work and there were monsoons each night that week. Instead of fearing the storm and wondering how it would impact my day, I would literally stare at the sky and appreciate how beautiful it was. I’ve never experienced such a beautiful storm (regardless of all the flash flood warnings I received on my phone). Those thunderstorms were one of the many highlights of my trip.
Take your time to appreciate everything around you. You don’t have to interpret stressful situations in a negative way — Try looking at stress as an opportunity to learn and grow.
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Thanks for reading!