how to manage stress and uncertainty
How much of your time and energy is spent worrying, ruminating, getting frustrated over the things you can’t control?
How much of your mood is being dictated by uncertainty, by the future, by what others are thinking of you?
Epictetus talked about the zones of control - zone 1 being what you do have control over and zone 2 what you don’t have control over, mainly everything that’s external. If you can recognise this in your daily life, it can help your mood, your stress levels and your decisions.
What you can control is how you respond to zone 2. What you choose to do and what you choose to say in any given moment. If you are not happy with something in your life, you may not be able to control it right now, but you can focus on what is within your control and do whatever it is you can.
It is natural, but a waste of time and energy to get caught up in the stress about the things in life that are beyond your control. It’s a good use of time and energy to work out how you respond to it.
The take home? Be solution focussed, focus on what you can control and take action. A question to ask, based on the Japanese word Arugamama, is - 'with things as they are, what needs to be done?'.
Corporate burnout to mental fitness
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