1. Taking small steps.
We tend to want everything all at once and in an instance. If we ask that from ourselves, we can get overwhelmed. When you’re doing big projects or are trying to reach large goals, learn not to ask too much from yourself. Taking small steps in the direction you want to go in gives you more gratification than when you’re trying to do everything at once.
Especially when it’s something you find scary or overwhelming.
When I have to do something like that I break up the task into small, more manageable tasks. For instance, I always hate to do my administration and get stressed even thinking about it. However, if I break it down into small steps like ‘collect my receipts’, ‘sort my receipts’, ‘put them into an excel-sheet’ and so on, it seems much easier to do and I can do one of those little tasks each day, without having to do the entire stressful task all at once. Less stress!
2. Talk about it.
When something bothers me, I don’t try to get rid of that feeling right away. I allow it, and analyze it to see exactly what’s bothering me. Then I think about what I can do to deal with it. What is always step 1, is talking about it. Sharing your worries pretty much always makes them easier to deal with, and friends are there to help (and are almost always more than happy to). You are not alone on this world and there’s never anything to be ashamed of. Being open about what’s on your mind can help a lot, especially when the result is that you don’t have to deal with it all by yourself. And friends can often provide a different perspective or have helpful tips.
3. Make a done-list
I love ‘To do-lists’ and I make them a lot, because I have more peace when all the things I have to do are written down on papier instead of in my head, causing stress when I’m trying to remember everything I need to do. But what I also do, is I make ‘done-lists’. I write down what I did that (few) day(s) or that week. Focusing on what you haven’t done or achieved yet can cause stress, and you may feel like you’re not able to rest until you’ve done the things you need to do. By focusing on what you have already done or achieved, I get more sense of achievement and I allow myself to be happy with what I have done, instead of being stressed about what I haven’t done.
4. Do something that makes you happy every day
No, you don’t have to go extreme and party every night or travel to a different country every week. Happiness is most found in little things. My therapist once had me make a list of everything that makes me happy. Even the smallest things. She dared me to really think it through and if I thought of something that put a smile on my face, write it down. And so I made quite a big list that contained things from ‘drinking chai tea’ and ‘listening to piano music to ‘having a good conversation with a friend’ and ‘getting a massage’. Now, I try to do (at least) one of the things on that list each day. I create a little moment of happy for myself, even it’s the tiniest moment, when eating a perfectly boiled egg for breakfast. It’s in the little things!
