Stress has become such a normal part of today’s culture that we throw the term around casually as if it is just a normal part of living. After all, who isn’t stressed nowadays?

In these modern, mobile times, there is so much constantly vying for our limited attention, distracting us at every turn. The practice of concentrating uses up a lot of energy. So too does switching your energy from one thing to another. Distraction is a highly energy hungry process and can be very exhausting. It can also take us off course from creating the life and career we desire.  

I never realised just how damaging stress is to our health and performance. Being stressed isn’t just something we should accept as the norm, it is something we should at the very least actively manage, and at best, take proactive measures to limit. That is what I want to talk about today, my go-to tool for limiting work related stress.

Back when I was working in corporate, and even today running my own business, there seems to be a never-ending list of things to do, people to meet and new concepts to learn. It can become seriously overwhelming. 

One of the big things I realised, is that stress is less often linked to everything you must do, and more to the lack of priority around doing it. The sense of overwhelm often arrives because we feel like we have to do it all now. I found that by writing down all the things taking up space in my mind and prioritising what the most important things are, then giving them absolute laser focus, really helps me move forward in a less stressed more relaxed way. Knowing that you are taking productive steps forward towards completing your objectives can help alleviate that sense of overwhelm.

The ability to focus on one task at a time is also the best way to conserve your energy. The old notion that women are better multi-taskers than men is one that needs to be challenged. Maybe women were known to be great multi-taskers because they had the responsibility to do so many things at once, but the impact of continuously switching between tasks is one of diminishing returns. Becoming focused on one primary task is very empowering in moving forward in your life to achieve what you desire. 

I would love to know, what do you do to help manage or reduce the stress that arises in your life? Let me know in the comments below.