This morning as I struggled to get a lid off it’s container, I thought about stress. Little stresses that sneak into our days. Like that lid. Or that item we struggle to reach every day. Or the dog barking down the street.
These little overlooked stresses are bad. They are like background noises we never notice or just accept. But we can change this. We can improve and smooth out our daily environment.
First. Take time to notice them. Identify the culprits. How do you feel stress? My brow wrinkles when I get stressed – both ways, horizontal and vertical. Your head may hurt or your shoulders tighten up.
Notice what stresses you and change it!
Move the item used daily to a more prominent spot, easier to reach. Group the daily items together. Smooth out the flow of your daily activities. Maybe declutter a bit so you have room for your daily items. Think to the future; will the item be easy to retrieve from here?
These stressors are the worst. They fly under the radar, unnoticed tiny points of stress popping up in our days, messing up our calm demeanor.
Second. Our mindset may need to shift. We may not be able to change every stress. Like the dog barking, there’s something to be said for accepting our life as it is. Still, we must be alert to use action where and when we can.
It may help to batch small tasks. Maybe just face off with these inconveniences and untangle the mess.
Use humor. Laughing is a great way to dispell stress and see a task completed. Maybe that dog is having a bad day too.
Keep your perspective sharp. Focus in and zoom out. Just how bad is it?
Small steps can make big changes.
Third. Remember it’s about the small changes we make to our environment and our mind set that add up to big stress relief. So, when time allows, notice what stresses you and change it up!
Here’s to stamping out stress, smoothing out our days, being thankful and proactive.