Going into the warmer season always seems to increase the stress in peoples lives. I know I personally have had stress enter my life the past few weeks, and I find my self always repeating what my dad has preached to me growing up– “stress is a choice!” As much as I neglected to listen to him, being the disobedient child I (sometimes) was, I realized as I got older he was  right! Stress really is a choice! Today, I feel like many of us treat stress as an airborne illness–when someone around is stressed and having a bad day, we often get pulled down by the energy they are putting out, now making US the victims to this “viral trend.” By repeating Stress is a Choice to yourself during the hard times, it really pays off and I plan on proving this to you ONCE AND FOR ALL!!

The purpose of this article is to

• Help you understand the power of your Emotional State
  
• Methods to help you override a  Negative Emotional State caused by Stress
• The Benefits of Living a Stress -Free Lifestyle

I know what you’re probably thinking…

“WHAT THE FLIP DO YOU MEAN  STRESS IS A CHOICE??!

I work from 5 am-9 pm 6x per week,
only to come home to my screaming new born daughter.
I barely have time to eat,
let alone exercise with my day being so sporadic
and you’re writing an article about how stress is a choice??
Psht, easy for you to say Pal…”

Before you go to the bottom of this article and and leave me a bad comment, let me first explain my reasoning…

Stress is a symptom BEFORE it becomes an emotion. Often times, we say we’re “stressed out” when all we’re really saying is, “We are anxious, nervous, angry, and depressed on how something has influenced us to feel!” Emotions are THE most powerful asset we possess! Emotions are responsible for how we: Think, Feel, Learn, and even how we Act! They also have a direct relationship on our not only our mental health, but our physical health as well.

Stress is a response by your brain to anything that disrupts your normal lifestyle, or your future plans.

When something disrupts are normal way of thinking or doing, it sends us into a Fight or Flight response, allowing adrenaline (<– Bear Grills Interview) to come into play. A fight or flight response is our body’s sympathetic nervous system in reaction to an alarming, uncomfortable, or unfamiliar situation.   This is the moment of truth– where our internal thoughts wish to seep through to the outside world, BUT–we STILL have the ability of stopping them from affecting others, and EVEN ourselves! I believe what you do next says a lot about your character, and your success.

When stressed we have Two Options:

1.  Allow stress to take over?
2.  Skip the stress phase altogether to rationally figure a way out.
   

Have you ever reacted impulsively when you were stressed? Now, did that original problem evolve into an even bigger problem, or is that just me? I know I have learned the hard way many times, which is why I figured I’d write this so I can save you the time and frustration it cost me . The one thing I learned from all my “stressful situations” was–

No matter how powerful our emotions are,

they alone will NEVER
overcome a Physical Problem
without a Physical Action taking place!

 
I found this brilliant article created by HelpGuide.org on how your  emotional intelligence (EQ) matters just as much as intellectual ability (IQ). Emotional intelligence helps you build stronger relationships, succeed at work, and achieve your career and personal goals.

How To Overcome Habitual Stress?? 

Overcoming stress should be treated as any other unintentional habit- we realize it first! The next time you find yourself becoming stressed, take note! This will help you identify your stress triggers. These triggers can be anything from  someone cutting you off on the expressway, to somebody’s phone ringing in a movie theater. Realizing these triggers will help you take action on avoiding them. Last week, I took the initiative to ask myself why something bothered me if there was no harm being done. What I learned was– I didn’t even know!!! All I knew was that something consistently allowed me to feel upset or angry, but once I realized I was just being an idiot, I was able to change my response altogether. Other triggers that have more complexity are sometimes a little trickier. My biggest trigger is when I make a ‘To-Do’ list for the day and for some reason, I am unable to get everything done. When this happens, I found that I focus primarily on the tasks that should have been done, instead of the tasks that should be my main priority. This then leads me to getting more behind, all thanks to irrational thinking. I finally  put my ego aside and researched anything and everything I needed to know on ‘Time Management.’ This helped me immensely! I was able to make the most of my day regardless of how behind I was, which extinguished my stress entirely! Working a little on each task allowed me to go back to it the next day with a clear head, knowing I was still productive the day before. I also noticed that the task I was struggling with then became easier when I went into it optimistically, and well rested.

The Benefits Of Being Stress Free!
There are so many great benefits that come with being stressed free. Ill keep the list short so you catch my drift:

• Enjoy the things in life without feeling tired, or a sense of obligation
• Gain 10x the amount of connections in all categories
• Solve problems rationally, and more effectively
• Everything somehow will put a smile on your face
• Getting along with others becomes easy and part of who you are
• You will inspire others to want what you have (they will ask questions–I promise you!)
• You will uncover knowledge and a way of thinking you never knew existed (Intellectual Thought Process)
• You will instantly become a leader without even trying!

Hopefully, this article really opened your eyes to a new way of thinking. Know that when someone else is stressed, or if you are temporarily overwhelmed with problems–you DO have a say in the matter of how deal with it. Don’t focus on the problems you are currently having, focus on the Big Picture solving that problem will lead you next, or the feeling of relaxation you will feel AFTER you are in the clear. Spread the word my friends! This world is at a point where we need to enlighten everyone we can. We’re in need of people like us to make the first move, to motivate and inspire others, and to make sure that each and every person shines their light to the rest of The World. Lead with your hearts–

 
we will be unstoppable…