As I mentioned in my last post, Work-Life Balance: Finding Inner Peace Despite External Turmoil, Simma Lieberman shared many pearls of wisdom at the last Women in Consulting (WIC) meeting. As I was going through the business cards from that meeting, I came across Simma’s. On it was eight steps to stress management. I thought I’d share them with you. Make sure to check out her site and blog for more stress management and work-life balance advice.
- Breathe. Remember to breathe. Start each day with five minutes of deep breathing. Take five deep breaths when feeling stressed or anxious.
Me: the key is to remember; maybe I should add it to Outlook, following step # 6. - Visualize. Stop negative/obsessive thoughts by visualizing a positive scene, e.g., the beach, mountains, fishing.
Me: right now, bed with at least eight hours of uninterrupted sleep is a positive scene for me. 🙂 - Process. Decide when you can control, and take action. Change the things you can. Learn to let go of the things you can’t control.
Me: I go, I go, I’m going to learn to let go. This is a new mantra I’m going to work on following. It’s that one-step-at-a-time thing I referenced in my last post. I’m sure I will fall at times, but like the toddler learning to walk, I’ll just get up and keep going. - Stop worrying. Change destructive self-talk to constructive self-talk.
Me: Whew! At least one of these is easy for me. 😉 I tend not to be worrier. I find it a waste of energy. But for those times when I do worry, I’ll change the destructive tapes. - Schedule. Put yourself on the calendar for fun and relaxation. If you don’t write it in, it won’t happen.
Me: I’m scheduling a massage first thing tomorrow morning — once it’s a reasonable time to call! Actually, I like this one, as it’s not uncommon for me to let this go. I’m also going to figure out another time to workout besides 5:30am, as it’s not ideal when I’m getting to bed late due to work. Plus, it’s not my favorite time. I feel better when I work out. It helps me relax. It reduces stress. - Support. You don’t have to do it alone. Create a support system of friends.
Me: this is where WIC is great. All of my WIC colleagues understand better than anyone what I’m going through when it comes to work stresses and work-life balance. - Accept. You’ll never be totally caught up in your work. If you were, they wouldn’t need you.
Me: okay, I’ll accept it. I guess I have to let go of that day dream. As a consultant, I definitely want to be needed! - Breathe. Remember to breath!! End each day with at least five minutes of deep breathing.
Me: I’m off to breath!
About Avery Horzewski
I try to remember that in 50 years (and sometimes even in 50 minutes) what I am worrying about will simply not matter. I may not be alive in 50 years but if I am I am certain the world and my situation will have changed so much that today’s sense that the sky is falling will seem amusing.
Thanks for taking the time to come up with this post. We need more blogposts like this in my opinion!