Note to self: I do not have to take this day all at once. I can take it one step at a time, one breath at a time and one moment at a time. I am only one person. Things will get done, when they done. I will trust the timing of my life.
Have you ever felt like everything was piling up on you shoulders and slowly crushing you? Or maybe you get that feeling of sinking... like when you were a kid and would stand at the edge of the tide, allowing the waves to pull the sand from under you, causing the sensation of sinking.
If you have experienced either of these feelings or just the plain old horrible feeling of "It's too much, I can't breathe." you have been the victim of self induced stress.
Why do I call it self induced stress?
Welp, that's because you made a decision to allow the day to run you. You chose to let the tasks you needed to complete and the circumstances around you to dictate how you feel and stress you out.
Don't worry, this is normal and something that we all do. Heck I fell victim to it last week and it last for a few days until I fixed my mindset about what was going on. (Sorry James!)
As the title of this post says... Either you run the day, or the day runs you. You choose.
The sooner you accept that you decide how you respond to a situation, the sooner you can realize that you hold the power in your hands. Pretty awesome, right?
9 times out of 10, overthinking is the behavior that gets us into trouble and we begin to spiral. We begin to desperately try to solve every issue in front of us ASAP and if you're a classic over thinker, you probably try to solve issues that no longer matter because you can't change the past.
"By overthinking we often create problems that aren't even there."
Pretty sure some of you might feel attacked right now. It's okay, I write most of these posts because I have experienced what I am talking about, so at least you're not alone.
So today, I am here to share some tips on how you can ensure that you run the day and the day doesn't run you! Ready?
Stay focused on the present. You can only control the moment you are currently in. Don't worry about what happened or what's to come. Just focus on the now. How you feel and what feels right in this very moment.
Practice gratitude. Take the time to notice and appreciate what you have and what you have already achieved. You also need to learn to show appreciation for the not so good stuff. Each "failure" you encounter offers a lesson that will help you to move forward and grow. #FailForward
Realize that life is made of choices. Think about how empowering it is to know that you get to decide how you react in a situation. You control your thoughts and your responses. You don't have to do anything you do not want to do. Now this also works in the reverse, meaning you need to take responsibility for your choices and not blame others when things don't go as you'd like.
Define your goals. Having a clear vision of what you want to achieve and what your values are, will serve as a guide when you need to make decisions. How do you want to live your life? Will this decision you need to make align with that? Think things through before you make decisions. Life is not a race!
Seek the positive. Every situation, no matter how bad it might seem offers a positive. Most times it's just not the positive we are seeking, so we close our minds off to it. That hardship you are facing will often teach you to think differently and look at things from a fresh perspective. This is your chance to find the positive and grow your mindset. It also opens you up to a new path that might be even better than the one you were hoping for!
"Stress is caused by being 'here' and wanting to be 'there'." - Eckhart Tolle
The key to happiness and keeping stress level down is to learn how to live in the moment and trust the timing of your life.
Easier said than done at first, I get it, but I guarantee when you practice and begin implementing this techniques, you will see progress!
