Many people make resolutions at the beginning of a year. But many of those hopes for the future are dashed just a few weeks into the calendar when it is obvious that the life-changing promises were never realistically going to hold. Usually, that’s because the resolutions concentrate on aspects of our lives that are far too big to change straight away.
In the same way as if you wanted to get rich you might think about other plans rather than just check out the latest betting websites, the path to a more stress-free life is made up of many different elements. Changing little things along the way all add up to a better future. So, if you are looking to reduce your stress levels – and, let’s face it, a lot has been going on recently! – here are six small ways to change your life for the better.
Surround Yourself with People Who Make You Happy
Obviously, it is difficult to shut out all the annoying people in your life. You can’t really do anything about the guy at work with the bad hygiene habits without quitting your job and losing out financially. But you can make sure that you decide who to surround yourself with outside of work.
Start cutting out the people in your life that don’t bring anything positive to the relationship. If you start hanging out with just the people who get you and accept you for who you are, you will be surprised at how quickly your stress starts to disappear. Look for shared interests and experiences and things will become calmer almost immediately.
Forget About Grudges
Remember that guy at work we were just talking about? Think of how much energy you waste thinking of ways to get him back for annoying you. Now think how much calmer your life would be if you could just forget all about him and get on with your daily tasks. Well, you can.
Hanging onto grudges honestly seems to be the one thing that keeps some people going. But grudges do nothing to help with your stress levels. You have to realize that you are the only one who is making you keep those grudges. So it is up to you to forget all about them.
Forget About Things You Can’t Change
This tip for a stress-free life directly follows on from the last one about grudges. Much of the time a feud or a grudge comes from something that you have no control over. In the same way you cannot do anything about the slow driver in front of you, or even the bills you have to pay.
Obviously, you will have to pay your bills – and that can be stress-inducing enough. But once you realize that you have to just deal with things like that, the stress will ease. Most stressful aspects of our lives aren’t financial burdens, so the quicker we learn not to dwell on them, the better.
Take Your Time and Focus
Much of the time we are stressed it is because we have a million things to do and not enough time to do them. But even the most overloaded of daily routines can be simplified, helping de-stress our lives in the process. The first thing to do is to get rid of all the distractions.
Start focusing on just one thing, or task, at a time and it is incredible just how much you will achieve. Being able to tick off items on the to-do list instead of mentally adding so many more that don’t even need to be there is liberating. Learn to focus and cut out the noise.
Work on Your Time Management
This is another stress-busting tip that blends into the last one. In fact, you will find that one of the ways to become calmer and learn to declutter your life is to realize that everything has an effect. So if your life has too much going on, it will all roll into each one and make an even bigger mess.
Learn to plan out your day and give yourself enough time to complete tasks. Forcing yourself to finish things by a certain time will only induce more stress. Learn about flexibility and how to prioritize. You won’t believe how much of your life is wasted trying to do things that just don’t need doing. If you manage your time well you will be able to achieve everything.
Figure 2 Even just getting enough sleep will make a big difference
Get Some Sleep
The average adult needs around seven to nine hours of sleep a night. It is very likely that if you are experiencing a lot of stress, you are not getting anywhere near that. This then means that you are playing catch-up every single day – and you will never get back to normal.
Make a point of going to bed at a regular time and relaxing beforehand. Switch off all distractions and avoid alcohol and caffeine, as they can disrupt sleep. Once you start sleeping regularly – and for long enough – everything else will be easier to fix and you might just start living more of a stress-free life.
