Cause of your stress not always what you think
Stress for Success
November 15, 2011


Do you assume you usually know what causes your stress? Are you sure you’re right?

Often what you think is stressing you really isn’t. That’s why accurately identifying the actual cause of your stress is the first step in managing it.

To do this you need to understand the most important point in stress management: stress is in the mind of the beholder. What stresses you may or may not stress me and vice versa. In other words, more often than not, your stress is in how you interpret situations; more often than not much if not most of your stress is in your head.

For example, what’s your attitude toward our winter visitors? If you’re grateful for the business they represent you’re probably not, in general, be stressed by them. But if you find traffic jams and long lines at area restaurants aggravating you’re stressed and may wish the Snow Birds would go back home!

I hate to tell you this, but the Snow Birds aren’t causing your stress. If they were, everyone would have to be equally stressed by them.

It’s not to say you should or shouldn’t think about our tourist season in any certain way. The point is that stress is in the mind of the beholder. When you behold irritation and inconvenience you’re stressed. When you behold economic gain you’re not.

To complicate the picture, every day humans find what they look for. If you perceive the tourist season to be a hassle, you’ll look for and find evidence of it. If you see economic benefits you’ll look for and find confirmation of that.

Miss this point and you’ll miss great opportunities for problem-solving, therefore stress reduction. Here’s why.

Your perception or interpretation of stressors determines the options you can see to solve them. Assuming tourists stress you leaves you with no real options for problem-solving because your view suggests the tourists must change for you to feel better. When will this happen? Don’t hold your breath! Tourists are beyond your control. Effective problem-solving requires you to invest your energy into that which is within your control.

What is within your control is your choice of reactions. “In all situations that stress you, you have a minimum of two options. You can go crazy or you can go peacefully. The choice is always yours.” – Adelle Greenfield.

If you want to go more peacefully and lower your stress coping with heavy traffic and the busyness tourism brings to our area, what are your options? You could put on relaxing music when stuck in traffic, avoid traffic when possible during rush hours, leave early, you could focus on the benefits of tourism, or you could find some humor in frustrating situations. It’s really up to you how much stress you experience.

So what’s it going to be? Do you want to go crazy or go peacefully? The choice truly is yours. Make your choice soon because with any luck we’ll have a great and busy upcoming season.

Jacquelyn Ferguson, M. S., is an international speaker and a Stress and Wellness Coach. Order her book, Let Your Body Win: Stress Management Plain & Simple, at http://www.letyourbodywin.com/bookstore.html. Email her to request she speak to your organization at jferg8@aol.com.