Sometimes we can get so weighed down by the stress in our lives, we can’t see a way out. It traps us, overwhelms us, and throws us off our game. If you are facing that gremlin called stress, try this simple exercise–it’s one of my favorites!
Get a pad of post-its and a giant sheet of paper. Take some time to brainstorm and list out every single thing in your life that is causing stress. Write each one on its own, individual post-it note. That simple act alone might be all you need, because sometimes writing it down or saying it out loud helps us realize it’s not as bad as we’ve built it up to be in our minds. Getting this list named and outside of your head is like turning on the light when you’re afraid of a monster in the dark. Once we see it for what it really is, we’re not afraid in the same way.
If the simple listing of the stress inducers is not enough to fully obliterate them, try the next step. Start sticking those individual notes to that large sheet of paper and hang that sheet up in a visible spot–your office, the kitchen, or perhaps the back of your bedroom door. It’s got to be somewhere accessible. Now, begin playing with the order that makes sense to you. Move them around, prioritize them, see how they fit together, and you may find an act of accomplishment in one area might positively affect another. Handle them one-by-one.
Now, when you find yourself lost and not knowing what to do, check the “post-it map” for your priorities and ideas. This allows you to emotionally unpack them, break them down, beat them up, give them weight, pop their bubble…and see how important–or unimportant–they really are.
Put your stressors into the light, and like Dracula in the sunlight, some of them will simply vanish under the bright scrutiny–leaving more room to face the real challenges. Take back control.
