So, maybe the best stress management tip is that you shouldn't worry about anything at all. That won't help either. Worry does have its uses. If you didn't worry about the risk of standing in the middle of the road, you're going to get run over. If you didn't worry about having no food, you would spend all day in bed and not go to work and starve.
The answer is somewhere in between. Do not waste time and energy worrying about everything in life. Just go and do something positive about the things which most effect you. Even if you fail at first, keep trying until you fix the problems in your life which are getting you down or just accept them and move on.
Having said this, there are some things in life which you can't really do anything about and so you should never be worried about them. Here are 3 no worry stress management events:
No worry stress management event 1: The small things in life. Too often we find things to worry about so we have something to focus on. Once they are solved we look for something else. Accept that this is a losing ticket as you will never solve everything. This is really just a way of avoiding doing the important and challenging things in life. A way of keeping yourself busy.
No worry stress management event 2: Death. We all die eventually and there is nothing we can do about it. Most people are in reality worried about how they are going to die, not death itself. The worry can be about a painful or lonely death. Don't waste the precious experience of being alive thinking about this.
No worry stress management event 3: What people think. All too often we imagine what other people think of us and we imagine it is negative. This is dangerous as it can lead to low self esteem and maybe even social anxiety disorder. Understand two things; other people may not actually be thinking what you think they are thinking. Even if they are, so what? No one is perfect and worrying about it will not change anything.
The list of things not to be worried about should really be everything, but it is human nature to worry. Stress management is understanding the difference between needlessly worrying about things which you can do nothing about and positively thinking about ways of meeting challenges which confront you.
Worry is a waste of time and energy and creates no positive outcome. It can even make you ill. Improving your stress management ability is focusing on developing a positive frame of mind, through simple techniques, leads to progress in your life and a sense of general well being. Stop being worried about things and start thinking positive.
InnerCents specialised in stress management, leadership training and executive coaching.
