Reduce Stress, Save Time, Achieve Goals
Stress is a universal experience, causes are found in both our personal and professional lives. Reducing stress not only improves quality of life, it can improve our health as well.
Here is a 3-step process that supports reducing stress using organizational strategies. Identifying areas of daily life, personal and professional, that cause stress and addressing them with plans for improvement can lead to life balance, stress reduction, time saved and goals achieved.
Step 1: Assess – When do you feel the most rushed or overwhelmed? Is there a breakdown in your routine? Where are you when you are feeling anxious? What time of day is it?
What would you like your routine, space, time to look like? How would you like to spend your time? What would a more organized, calmer life look like for you?
The answers to these questions will allow you to identify stressors. Be as thorough as possible during this step. Identifying all of your stressors provides the opportunity to prioritize and strategize to best address the challenges and improve your quality of life.
Step 2: Plan – What needs to happen to be successful? What changes are necessary for success? Which of the items/issues that you have noted is most urgent?
Identify a starting point. Identify all of the contributing factors leading to your stress. Plan to address the factors that you have identified.
Map out a timeline of steps that must be taken to achieve your goal. Concentrate on making the steps doable. If they are too large they will be overwhelming. A step can consist of a seemingly minor task. Taking small steps will allow you to make progress quickly and not become bogged down.
What will your first step be? Sometimes steps can be taken quickly and are easy to execute. Some steps will require more time and effort. Be realistic in your expectations for progress. This process should alleviate stress not cause it.
Step 3: Execute – Work your plan! Begin with step 1 and follow your plan. Try to eliminate distractions. Note and revise your plan to accommodate any obstacles that were not anticipated and planned for. Use the structure you have in place to help maintain your focus.
When you encounter new or unrecorded challenges have a place where you can save your ideas so that you can come back to them after the current plan has been executed successfully.
When you feel like you have everything "pulled2gether" you can relax and enjoy life!
Ready to feel the "Ahhhhhh"?
As you consider opportunities to reduce the stress in your life, please share your experiences and strategies in the comments.
Need a boost to get started? Would receiving ongoing support and encouragement speed the achievement of your goals? This is our specialty! Contact P2G Consulting to learn more about our coaching service options and begin your journey!
