No matter who you are or what you do, you more than likely feel stressed out at least once in a while. For the great majority of people in our society, stress is a problem faced every single day. Work, bills, children, relationships, life – it can be tough to handle it all sometimes. There is no magic cure for stress, but there are a few key actions that you can take in order to reduce it to its lowest possible form; here are six of them:

1. Be Proactive

If you have a problem, any problem at all, face it! I’ve always found that some of my worst stress comes from putting something off that I would rather not do. It is always better to spend your time doing whatever is in your control to do to repair the issue and put it behind you. Sitting and worrying or complaining never fixes anything.

2. Know Stress When You See It

If there are particular things, people or situations that stress you out, acknowledge them and either remove yourself from them or learn to deal with them more productively. Sit down with pen and paper and take the time to consider the question: what stresses me out? You’ll be surprised at how easy the answers seem when you take time to devote to each individual stressor.

3. Be Organized

One guaranteed way to stress yourself out is to be unorganized in your daily life. Without a clear idea of where your day is going, the day itself can seem to get out of hand, leaving you frazzled. Be aware of the appointments and obligations of the day and face them head on! You can acheive this by taking time out in the morning to consider and be mindful of the places you know your day will take you, making sure that very little will catch you unprepared.

4. Don’t Do Too Much

Modern society is fast paced and very demanding and too many of us commit far too much of ourselves to no better an endeavor than making money or climbing a corporate ladder. That’s not to say that there is anything wrong with making money; on the contrary, one clear path to a more peaceful and happy life is having the money needed to sustain your chosen lifestyle. Money means very little to the happiness of the spirit though, and you need to remember that. Don’t take on so much that you lose track of the things that truly make you happy.

5. Go With The Flow

Like it or not, stuff happens. Things rarely go exactly as we plan them and getting worked up over a glitch in your day is simply not worth it. I find the best way to counteract this is to simply plan only the fundamentals; I’m not particular and I’m open to possibility. In addition, do the easy things like giving yourself a bit of extra time “just in case” and keeping in mind that there are worse things to be than late.

6. Be Active

Bad physical health ALWAYS leads to bad mental health. Treat your body well, take the middle road of moderation when you do indulge in a treat and exercise every single day. Yoga practice, tai chi, jogging, aerobics, walking, bicycling…the possibilities are endless. And don’t let time stop you! If you have only five minutes to spare, devote it to stretching. Your body has the terribly difficult task of bearing your consciousness with it every day, all day; reward it with preferable treatment.

photo by Velvet G.

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