Sure Shot Ways to Release Stress

The 21^st century’s fast paced erratic lifestyle, work pressures, tight deadlines, cutthroat competition, unrealistic expectations, and work-life imbalance has made the environment – both at workplace and at home – highly stressful for most of us. Stress affects every person, irrespective of age, gender, job profile, and economic well being; affecting our health, relationships and performance.

In such a scenario, it is important to know and use some simple tools to cleanse our system from time to time. Here are some time-tested stress-busters that will not only help in releasing the accumulated stress but also prevent it from building in the first place:-

Cry it out- Whenever we feel overwhelmed by stress, tears naturally well up in our eyes. But more often than not, we try to control them. From now onwards, allow your tears to flow freely, without feeling like a jerk or a coward. Tears are a wonderful stress-releasing mechanism factored in our physiology. Use it.

Talk it out- Speaking about our problems lessens their pressure upon us. But most of us shut ourselves up tight and wallow in our own sorrows. From now onwards, talk about everything that lies bottled up inside you. Besides talking to your friends and family, you can join some online support group.

Take out some ‘me’ time- It is very important to take out some time for your own personal upkeep. Be kind to yourself, and once in a while pamper yourself, without feeling guilty. Find sufficient time to relax.

Learn to say No- We usually find it hard to say ‘No’ to others’ requests and feel guilty when we can’t please everyone. But remember that saying ‘No’ and ‘Yes’ at the right time and to the right person goes a long way in managing stress which comes from over-demand and inadequate self maintenance.

Ask for help - Whenever you feel overwhelmed with work, don’t be reluctant to ask for help. Remember, Jesus Christ’s words, “Ask and it is given.” In any case, don’t burden yourself with more than you can chew. Do not combine too many projects, and delegate jobs, if necessary.

Think happy thoughts- Once in a while, close your eyes and think of something from your past that you are proud of or happy about. Let that memory play back in your mind with all its details, sounds, smells, emotions, feelings etc. Live that experience once again.  This is a great stress-busting tool.

Deep Breathe- Our breath connects our inner world to our outer world; hence, we can use this ever-present phenomenon to release all the accumulated stress in our body and mind. Learn to deliberately deepen your breath.  Every once in a while, especially when you are feeling tense, breathe in slowly through your nose and breathe out slowly through your mouth.  Do this for five minutes and notice the difference in your energy. You will definitely feel less tense and more relaxed.

If you use these simple tools regularly, you can say goodbye to stress and enjoy your life more fully! 

‎

Read more!

Success or Excellence

In my practice as a Life Coach I often advice people to focus more on personal excellence and less on success. This is an unusual advice, which is often misunderstood, in a world that loves to focus upon success.

 

What is the difference between success and excellence? The major difference is that while success is often measured in comparison to others, excellence is about being the best that we can be. It is about maximizing our gifts, talents and abilities to perform at our highest potential, at any given time. It is about realizing that our greatest competitor is not someone else, but we ourselves.

To achieve personal excellence, and be the best that we can be, we have to remember a few golden rules:-

·         Do not worry about who your competitors are. That is irrelevant.

·         Do not focus upon winning. Instead, focus upon mastering the fundamentals of your job. Focus upon daily improvement in your performance, however little that improvement may be. If you are working in a team, focus on teamwork.

·         Do not spend your life looking around to see how your competitors are doing; instead, march straight towards the vision of greatness you have for yourself and your team.

·         Do not look at others as ‘the’ standard, to measure your progress against; instead, embark upon a quest for excellence and focus 100% of your energies to become your best…and let success find you. Ironically, when you do not measure yourself against others, you become the measuring stick for others. Apple’s iPod, iPhone, and iPad are examples of products that didn’t focus on competition.

·         Work to the best of your ability and be happy with the outcome, whatever it may be, for that day.

No matter what we do in our life, doing it to the best of our ability brings in the greatest rewards. Making a commitment to personal excellence ensures a life full of success, passion, and fulfillment. Excellence is important because the results we experience are always in direct proportion to the quality of our actions. If we put in half-hearted actions, we achieve minimal results, but if we give our absolute best to what we do, we achieve miracles.

Concept of excellence must be applied to all areas of our life: health, wealth, career, and relationships. Sometimes we do just a ‘good enough’ job and call it our best effort; we don’t fool anyone but our self by doing that. We can get good results from putting in a ‘good enough’ effort, but we get excellent results by doing excellent work.

When we start putting in our best efforts into everything that we do, it becomes a habit, which brings added benefits of joy of learning, enthusiasm of stretching our limits, and satisfaction of a job well done.

Excellence is our birthright as we are a shining example of excellence created by nature; and when our goal is excellence, success is often its outcome and byproduct.

‎

Read more!

Say Nice Things About Yourself

For some reason our society discourages, even scoffs at, people saying nice things about themselves. This tendency is labeled as ‘blowing your own trumpet’, ‘being too full of yourself’, and worst of all ‘having narcissistic tendencies’. If you have the habit of speaking about your strengths, you are considered pompous, obnoxious, and over-bearing. But whether you like it or not, this is one trait which definitely pays off big time when you go for a job interview, because it makes you look confident and capable. The only problem is that since most of us are usually out of practice, we hesitate and fumble when we have to list our positive traits. 

So, how can you learn to promote yourself, not just in job interviews but in life itself? Here are a few tips:-

·         Learn to say nice things about yourself and feel okay about it.
·         Say nice things about others as well. Complimenting others invites compliments our way too!
·         Smile more often, that will make you feel good about yourself.
·         Develop a genuine interest in your own strengths and strengthen them.
·         Use your charm to inspire and persuade others of your goodness.
·         Ask your parents, grandparents, relatives and friends to tell you positive stories from your childhood.
·     Take time to listen to others’ suggestions about how you can improve yourself. Measure your personal growth on set parameters (set by you).
·   Be empathetic to yourself and don’t beat yourself for your failings, which are nothing but learning opportunities.
·         Be sensitive to your need for love and appreciation. Give it to yourself.
·         Learn to appreciate every small success of yours.
·         At the end of the day, give yourself a loving hug and gently massage your limbs.
·      Set attainable goals for yourself and share your thoughts with people who care about you. In any case, do care about your own self.
·      Do not compete with others but have a vision for yourself. Know where you are heading. Give yourself a sense of direction. Work hard to translate your vision in your life.
·         Take the lead to be ahead of your own game of bettering yourself. Remain positive about your life.
·    Know that you can rely upon yourself each and every time. Give yourself enough reasons to believe in yourself.
·         Take complete responsibility for your personal growth, especially when the tide is working against you.
·         Stick to self-growth principles. Develop your personal value-system. Carry out your duties with diligence.
·         Remain open to change, movement, innovation and new ideas.
·         Boost your own morale by doing things that make you joyful. 

‎

Read more!

Role Models

Two kinds of people leave their mark on this world (create inspirational life-story).....:)

The ones who start as underdogs but with the dint of their focus, passion, inspired actions and complete commitment to their growth, reach dizzy heights of success..........

The other ones are those who start with everything going just right for them, reach dizzy heights and then give it all up to follow their heart/ passion.......

Are you one of these? Are you writing an inspirational story? Are you your own role model? 

If not, why not? What stops you?

If yes, you are a blessing to mankind...♥

‎

Read more!