Are you stressed? I mean we all experience some sort of stress in our everyday lives. And it is kind of difficult to avoid the stress altogether. Because our lives are hectic and busier than ever.
We all have so many responsibilities from work, financial, taking care of our children, having a social life , spending quality time with our partners, eating healthy and I could go on. But you get the point. With having to manage so many things, comes the stress of it all.
Not all days are bad though. I am sure you have your fair share of the good days too. But some days are more stressful than others, right? And a lot of the times it gets overwhelming too.
The act of balancing things is tough. Tougher than the movies make it look. It is also tougher than the influencers on social media make it look.
Everyone seems to have their lives together, except you.
But, let me assure you, it’s not just you.
Things you see on social media are everyone’s highlight reels and not the complete picture. But in case you have been feeling stressed lately, then this post is for you.
In today’s post I am sharing 10 habits of people who are never stressed.
I have tried and tested these habits myself. When I quit my job and started my business, days were overwhelming and stress was through the roof. But Adopting these small habits and trying them over a couple of years, I know that they work. So, here we go:
- Living in the present :
- Set clear goals & have an action plan to achieve them :
- Do not compare to others:
- They are in tune with their thoughts:
- They have routines and are organised:
- They take care of themselves:
- They do not work to the limit of burning out:
- They have a close circle to rely on:
- They have self loving ways to unwind after work:
Living in the present :
We often stress about things that have not happened yet. We think so much about what if and what could happen if I do this or if I don’t do this. And imagining these scenarios in your head is probably the number one cause of stress.
And while there is nothing wrong with trying to think ahead and making a plan B in case your plan fails, it’s probably time to stop if your thoughts are not letting you be present in the moment.
And a lot of the times, things we thought would happen or all the things we thought would go wrong, don’t even happen. And you realise that you were stressed for no reason at all.
If you *think* about it, the present moment is all you have. You can never be sure of what future brings. And while it is a great idea to be future ready, it is not a great idea to keep living in the future scenarios and forget about the present.
Especially if they are causing you stress.
Also, I am a firm believer than your thoughts become your reality. Because your subconscious mind is stronger than you think it is.
So if you keep feeding it negative beliefs and negative scenarios, it will find a way to make them happen, pretty much like manifestation.
So, try to live in the present and avoid the stress of the future. Here are some things you can do to be more present:
Find some grounding activities that can help you re-centre yourself.
Be aware that you are feeling stressed. Being self aware is number one thing you can do to improve your life, in general. And this self awareness will help you take the necessary action when you are feeling stressed.
Some of the grounding activities that I find really helpful are:
Breathing exercises: Focussing on your breath is extremely powerful and is such a great way to come back to the present moment whenever you are feeling anxious about the future.
The act of taking long deep breaths while being completely focussed takes a lot of effort, more than you realise. And when you close your eyes and be present with your breaths, you find the stress melting away.
Meditation: Meditation also has the same effect like breathing exercises. In fact breathing deeply is a form of meditation. Sometimes, just a 5-10 minutes meditation is all you need to re-centre yourself.
And before you think that it’s not for you, give it a try at least. There are so many apps that offer free guided meditations. Pick any and give it a try.
Gardening or a slow hobby: Any hobby that you really enjoy doing, preferably a slow activity is also a great way to let go of stress. While gardening you are fully present in the moment and forget about things that were worrying you.
I love gardening in the mornings. And even if you don’t have a big garden, you could still take up this hobby in your balcony, like me.
Set clear goals & have an action plan to achieve them :
Having clear life goals and an action plan to achieve them will help you let go of un-necessary stress around your work. Because when you have well planned goals and an action plan that will help you reach those goals, you will KNOW that you’ll eventually get there.
People who are not stressed set clear defined goals and work on them. They are not in a rush to reach their goals, because they know they will.
When you have an action plan, everyone else’s success doesn’t remind you of your failures. You understand that hard work pays off. And you KNOW that your time to reap the fruits of labour will come.
People who have clear goals are not intimidated by other people’s success, but they celebrate their wins. They know that other people’s achievements have nothing to do with their own. And just because everyone around them is doing well, doesn’t mean there are less opportunities for them.
Having an action plan also works in letting go of stress because you are not constantly worried that you need to get more work done. you have a clear sense of direction and you know where your life is headed. You no longer feel like you’re just going with the flow.
Do not compare to others:
People who live stress free lives have a good habit of not comparing their life to others. It is a habit that doesn’t come naturally to you. Especially if you have been brought up being told to look at your peers and how well they did in exams.
But people who are stress free have worked out ways to not fall into the rabbit hole of comparison game. They know that looking at other people’s life and feeling bad for their own will not do them any good.
With social media being such a huge part of our lives, we often compare our lives to the lives of complete strangers on the internet. There are some things you should know if you find yourself comparing too:
- No ones lives are the same. We all come from different backgrounds, have been brought up with different values and have different struggles. We all have different privileges as well. So comparing your life to someone else doesn’t make any sense.
- What you see on social media is only a part of people’s lives that they decide to showcase. And it is about 10% of their actual life, if not less. Do not compare your lows with someone’s highs. It’s not the complete picture.
- We are all in different season of life. What your life looks like right now, depends on what season you are in. For example: I am a new mom and my life won’t look remotely similar to a teenager’s life on their gap year road trip through Europe. So there is no point in even comparing, right? (not that I should compare my life to other new moms)
- Comparison is a thief of joy. When you compare, you develop a scarcity mindset. And you focus on only the things that are lacking from your life. And that’s a pretty shitty way to look at your life, don’t you think? Instead, you need to be grateful for the things you have and look at things from an abundance mindset.
They are in tune with their thoughts:
People who are stress-free are in tune with their thoughts. They have the ability to understand what they are feeling and what emotions they are going through.
Sometimes life can be quite overwhelming and being in tune with how you are feeling and being able to communicate it properly definitely helps.
A lot of the times we are in stressful situations only because we find it too difficult to ask for what we want. In our jobs, we often don’t ask for what we deserve. In our relationships we often fail to express what we feel. And these mis-communications or short communications can sometimes lead to stressful situations.
And people who are relatively stress free know how important it is. They know how to express themselves and do it well and often. We do not shy away from asking for a raise, when they feel like they deserve it. You can see how that will avoid financial stress later on.
Some exercises that can help you be more in tune with your thoughts and show up as your true authentic self are journalling and brain dump.
Journalling with self discovery prompts helps you understand yourself better. It gives you a fair idea of what you like, what kind of a life you want. And when you are fully self aware, you can make better decisions.
Brain dumps are also a great tool for the same because it allows you to write whatever comes to mind and sometimes you need to put pen to paper to make sense of your thoughts. It helps you give direction to your thoughts and understand yourself better.
They have routines and are organised:
Having a routine and being organised can prevent you from stressful situations. Imagine not having the stress of last minute submissions or making presentations right before meetings.
Even though some people say they strive on the deadlines and it helps them get the work done in lesser time. but for most of us, avoiding these stressful situations is the way to go. Give yourself enough time to be able to revise your submissions if you feel like.
I find that doing things last minute often causes you to compromise on the quality of the work. And to me, nothing is more stressful than knowing that I could have done it better.
I hate the feeling of regret that comes with not giving your best to your project. And especially when you didn’t do it, because you procrastinated in the beginning and got it done in a hurry as the deadline approached.
Routines are also great way to stick to good habits and avoid un-necessary stress. Motivation is so over-rated when it comes to sticking to new habits and thats why having proper routines in place is the key.
They take care of themselves:
If you are not taking care of your physical and mental health on the daily, you will be more stressed. And a healthy mind resides in a healthy body. People who are rarely stressed know that they need to be taking care of themselves.
They workout on a regular basis and use workout as a form of self care. They know the importance of moving their bodies and try different workouts to switch it up.
They also know the importance of eating healthy and nutritious meals. They don’t get take outs every other day or eat junk food on the daily. Instead, they stick to proper meal plans and have healthy home cooked, balanced meals.
They educate themselves on the importance of nutrition and know what makes a healthy balanced diet. Even while eating out, they know what options are best and make decisions based on that.
They also practise self care everyday. It is a part of their routines. They understand that they can’t serve from an empty cup and that they need to take care of themselves first.
They do not work to the limit of burning out:
The best way to avoid stress is to not work yourself to the limit of burning out. These days hustle culture is so overly romanticised that taking a break and relaxing seems absurd to people.
There is always something more you can do. Either you can get more work done or you can work on your side hustle to build up another stream of income. And while I love being productive post work and not wasting my time on Netflix everyday, I believe we need rest as well.
In order to avoid stress and be in a position to handle stressful situations well, you need to give yourself a break too. People who are never stressed are good at handling stressful situations because they are well rested and their mind is at peace as well.
They do not worry about what else they could be doing instead of relaxing. The understand the importance of relaxing and allowing yourself some down time as well.
They have a close circle to rely on:
Having a close circle of friends and family that supports and uplifts you can be really helpful in relieving stress. Having someone you can talk about your day or what’s causing you stress is really important.
It is important to have friends who understand the current season of life you are in or who are in a similar season as you. So if you are a new mom, it is important to connect with other new moms and have a support group you can rely on.
It helps you avoid stress as you can simply talk to them if you are facing an issue. And they will be really supportive too as they’ve been through similar situations and understand where you are coming from.
And sometimes just spending time with the people you love and who bring you joy is all your need to de-stress. And people who are never stressed know how important it is to spend quality time with your friends or family. They do not bring their phones into their time with friends/family.
They have self loving ways to unwind after work:
It is often impossible to avoid stressful situations at work. Life is chaotic and some times things get to you. No one is truly bullet proof. That’s why it is even more important to have self loving ways to relax and unwind after work.
This becomes especially important if you’ve had a long, tiring and stressful day at work. Having an unwind routine that allows you to de-stress and put the day down is important. We need to have a system and routine that helps us let go of the day, so that we are ready to move onto the next day.
So often we let the anxiety and stress from the past day seep into the next morning and start our mornings feeling stressed. Having s self loving self care routine will help with that.
And I keep saying “self loving ways” because maybe after a long day all you want to do is get a drink and hit the bed. But that isn’t the best and you won’t feel your best the next morning. Instead, you need a routine that helps you feel your best and sets you up for a great day the next morning.
Some self loving ways to relax after a stressful day are:
- Journalling: Journalling about the day helps you gather your thoughts and put down the day. it allows you to focus on what you can do better the next day and not let the failures of today carry on to the next day.
- A long hot shower: A self care shower/bath can really help you unwind after work. You just need to be fully present and not let your thoughts wander. There is no benefit in repeating the incidents of the day over and over agin in your head. Instead, focus on where you are at the present moment and let all your worries melt away.
- Meditation: Meditation is also great because it allows you to centre yourself, no matter how stressful your day has been. They are a lot of guided meditation apps available and you can try out a simple 5-10 minute meditation to begin with.
- A healthy home cooked meal: Making yourself a healthy nourishing meal is definitely one of the best self loving ways to relax and unwind. No matter how your day was, you still need proper nourishment and believe me, this simple act of self care goes a long way.
There you go. 10 Daily habits of people who are never/rarely stressed. The thing is that stressful situations arise every now and then and it all depends on how you handle them.
Leave a Reply