There is a cure for stress. It is not a drug and it is not a fantasy. It
won't cost you money, but it is not for free. Many people who try it
out feel born again, others rejuvenated. The remedy is known under many
different names. You may call it simplification or streamlining,
reduction or selection, focus or elimination, logic or rationality.
Moving from excessive stress to focused efficiency
An
efficient approach to living is easier to name than to implement.
Minimizing stress requires man to concentrate his energies on the
essential areas of his life. This is a goal that can only be achieved by
establishing priorities. Eliminating stress results from making choices
and embracing simplification.
Why are so many people reluctant
to set priorities in their lives? Why do they prefer to run in circles
rather than follow a straightforward path towards their objectives?
Individuals affected by stress frequently lack consistent criteria to
make decisions. Men and women who live in anxiety often fear standing
still for a minute and questioning their own contradictions.
Overloading
one's days with senseless activities is a psychological defence
mechanism against the fear of taking responsibility. Rational decisions
are impossible for people who lack a sense of direction. On many
occasions, having too much to do is an excuse to avoid facing
indecision. Small talk with one hundred acquaintances cannot replace a
deep conversation with one close friend.
Personal development is not possible without clear priorities
Stress is to the human
soul what indebtedness is for a business. Both are problems that
compound with time unless a workable strategy is adopted. Intelligent
choices enhance professional and private results. Efficiency begins with
clarity.
Resources, in particular time, are limited in all human
endeavours. We minimize stress when we apply simplification,
concentration, and selection to make the best of what we have available.
Those three elements constitute the rational approach to eliminating
anxiety and maintaining a healthy psychological balance.
Simplification,
the opposite of complexity, results in more energy. Fruit growers prune
trees once per year in order to reinforce the vigour of the healthiest
branches. Lean trees produce more fruit than those loaded with moribund
branches. In the same way, stress is minimized when we make rational
choices and discard activities that waste our time and bring little
satisfaction.
Concentration improves results in business and
private life. Shepherds cull herds to prevent contagious sickness to
spread. By nurturing only healthy sheep, they ensure an optimal result.
The benefits of concentration also apply to human affairs. Minimizing
stress involves abandoning wasteful activities and focusing our time in
areas of importance.
Selection frees up time for what really
counts. Every man should aim at a future that is better than his
present. Know your priorities and reaffirm them at every opportunity.
Clever retailers sell slow-moving items at low prices in order to make
space for more popular goods. In order to minimize stress, we need to
make clear decisions and abandon unattainable goals.
Why you need to make long-term thinking a daily habit
Individuals
succeed in reducing stress when they acquire a rational approach to
living. Anxiety disappears from our lives when we follow logical and
consistent principles. Thinking long-term allows man to identify his
goals and priorities. Thoughtfulness allows man to gain visibility and
increase his efficiency.
Productivity experts advise workers to
clear up the factory floor in order to allow them to see their own
mistakes. It is only after misplaced tools and obsolete inventory have
been removed that people figure out how to improve and change their
ways. Without visibility, there can be no transformation. Without
choices, there can be no progress.
Setting priorities and making
rational decisions constitute the best way to reduce stress in our
lives. A cluttered agenda is a cage full of paradise birds waiting to be
released. Those birds are your best ideas, the ones that you have not
yet formulated. Simplify your life and sharpen your ambitions. The birds
are ready to fly. Open the cage door and set them free.
Text: http://johnvespasian.blogspot.com
Image by Esme_Vos under Creative Commons Attribution License. See the license terms under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/us
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