Managing Stress

Stress is a component in many major diseases, as is being shown in more and more studies. If you don't handle your stress effectively, it can also cause problems in your business.

It’s important to realise everyone has stress at some level, and if you're not careful, it can hurt you. Stress comes from 4 sources also called stressors.​
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1. Situational stressors come from your situation, your environment, and your culture. Work would be one of these, as well as unexpected situations, bad news, change, and noise.
2. Major life events such as marriage, death, divorce, birth, ill health, or financial problems.
3. Other people can be stressors if they have unreal demands or expectations.
4. Internal stressors like perfectionism, feelings of inadequacy, or unmet needs can be the biggest stressors of the four.

Learning to handle stress can make you healthier and happier, and it can certainly help you to run your business more efficiently. The first step is identifying when you are feeling stressful. Here are the questions to ask yourself at that time:

1. What's causing this stress?
2. When does it happen?
3. What exactly am I feeling now?
4. What can I do to ease my feelings of stress in this particular situation?
5. How would I prefer to be reacting now? Play around with several options and discover which one serves you best. Then…use it.

Here are some coping behaviours to help you handle stress:

• Accept your stressful feelings. They are valuable because they tell you that something is wrong that you need to pay attention to.
• Practice coping skills like saying "no," taking initiative, developing a sense of personal power, and taking responsibility.
• Establish a supportive network of people who are interested in your well being.
• Build a healthy lifestyle which combines good nutrition, exercise, relaxation, non-smoking, and moderate alcohol and caffeine.
• Recognise there are some things you just can't control and let them go.

Share your strategies for coping with stress in the comments below
That's all for now til next time this is Julie Silfverberg with Success Partners - working with you to create your success mindset.

I’m curious how do you offset your stress…if you have any! Do share in the comments below, we would all benefit.