Your Baggage is Holding You Back
Stress is something that we all experience at some point in our lives.
If we’re facing a key deadline at work, or if we’re starting a new job or moving, we may experience short-term stress. There can be stress when we don’t feel prepared or when our plates are full. Additionally, stress can be caused by events outside of our control, such as a traumatic event, an accident or a serious illness. As we discuss in this article, the key is to make sure that the contributors to stress, and I dare say, the stress itself isn’t carried around like baggage.
Our bodies are incredibly adaptable – which is why we can survive in a huge variety of environments and situations. But our ability to adapt can also work against us when we’re under stress.
Medical experts say it’s inherent in us. Our body is hard-wired to react to stress in ways meant to protect us against possible threats and warnings. But too much stress can harm us. So when stressors are always present, we feel under attack, and our fight-or-flight response stays active.
Brenda Trott
“We’re hard-wired to look for the problems. I don’t know if that’s because we want to fix those problems or there’s something more innate to it,” says Marketing and Manifestation Coach, Brenda Trott.
“Don’t just pretend you’re okay and put it down. Deal with it,” recommends Trott.
Trott shares some strategies she suggests can help us cope with our stress.
Emotional Freedom Technique
The Emotional Freedom Technique or EFT is one way to deal with stress and negative feelings. “The thing about EFT that I love is that it’s self-regulating. And it’s something that most anyone can do,” shares Trott.
EFT Tapping, according to the National Library of Medicine has been used to treat PTSD patients. A study was made on war veterans subjected to EFT tapping against those who received standard care. The former showed faster recovery than the latter, with a significant reduction in psychological stress in a month’s time. On top of that, more than half of the EFT test group no longer fit the criteria for PTSD.
Advocates say that tapping stimulates the meridian points, which can reduce a person’s negative feelings and stress. It restores balance to a body’s disrupted energy. Trott quickly discussed using karate chop and top of the head, two of nine ways to tap into the major meridians.
“You can receive relief just by doing EFT tapping. So tap on the head while saying, “I’m anxious. I don’t know why. I don’t know if I’m going to be able to pay my employees. I don’t know if I’m going to keep this business open. I don’t know what’s going to happen. But whatever happens, I will be okay. Everything will work out for me in the end,” illustrates Trott.
One of her satisfied clients describes EFT as better than therapy. She went from $700 a month to her first $10,000 a month. When you hear these success stories often enough, it invites you to think of moving into this mindset that could open up a new world of opportunities for you.
Brenda demonstrates EFT in this Podcast episode
Broaden your horizons
“Internally, you have this limiting line,” says Trott. It could be a financial standpoint, a family paradigm, or self-taught lessons. “So anytime you venture out of that and try to get bigger or better, your inner self, that former child in you says, ‘No, that’s not safe.’ So, all of these things are going to work and conspire so that it doesn’t happen.”
Trott grew up an introvert with a very limiting belief. She never thought she would ever be a speaker or come up on stage and video that she is doing today. But the more she learned about broadening her horizons, the more she realized that she could do anything at all.
Rewrite your self-limiting story.
Understand that situations that happened in the past were circumstances. They happened. How we react to those circumstances is within our control. By resetting our thoughts, we will reset the feelings we have about the circumstances. That in turn will influence the actions we take and the results we get.
A business owner who has had an employee steal from him, for example, might feel stressed about not being present on the property to watch over the staff. His thinking will be “The staff can’t be trusted.” The feeling he has when thinking about the staff is one of distrust. His actions will be to put systems in place to track his staff–to constantly question what they are doing and to second-guess their decisions. The result is he micromanages. He spreads himself thin, interfering with the staff’s performance, telling them how to do their job. His staff doesn’t show initiative nor do they take chances. They are afraid to make decisions.
Instead, the business operator could isolate the situation. “Jim stole $500 from the cash” (Circumstance). “Jim was dishonest… but that was Jim. My control systems were good enough to catch the theft” (Thought). He realizes that he is disappointed and hurt by what Jim has done (Feeling). The action he takes is to terminate Jim. The result he gets is that he no longer has to contend with Jim’s trustworthiness, and depending on how he plays his cards, the rest of the team knows that the business owner trusts them.
Be grateful
Trott suggests that we challenge ourselves to write five things we’re grateful for every day and then periodically go back. That feeling of fulfillment one gets by reviewing them builds up energy.
Being aware and present to our stress and how we think about our circumstances can do wonders for our mental and emotional well-being. But there’s a caveat. Whatever tips and strategies we learn must be put into practice. We must constantly challenge ourselves and ask, “Why am I thinking what I am thinking? Why am I feeling what I’m feeling? Why am I reacting this way?” Then, we must apply our learnings with intentionality and awareness.
Louise Hay says, “If you accept a limiting belief, then it will become a truth for you.”
About Brenda Trott
Author of several “how-to” media marketing books and nominated the best Social Media Strategist in Houston, Brenda Trott is often called upon by ABC radio and other media venues to chime in on the ever-changing online world.
She offers classes and consulting for do-it-yourself marketers and those who are ready for less ebb and more flow in their business income.
Take her free survey at http://FinallyFinanciallyFree.me
YT: https://www.youtube.com/user/brendatrott
About the Author
Marc Haine
Marc is a service expert and a master of experiences. He's also an author, speaker, facilitator and coach. He will help your teams ignite their passions, enable your leaders to recentre their focus, and drive continuous improvement through connected and engaged employees. This will allow you to realize your competitive advantage with a connected purpose and consistency of customer experience across your brand. He will dare your people to cultivate a generous attitude and lead with love and kindness first.
