Stress can cause us to act differently. It can cause us to be more abrupt, more direct, less effective, and too aggressive. Afterwards we may feel regret, but too often the damage is already done.
William James has said, “The greatest weapon against stress is our ability to choose one thought over another.” We have the ability to change our thoughts and therefore we can change how stress affects us and how often it affects us.
The first step is eliminating stress caused by things we don’t control. The second step is reflection. We can learn about our reactions and the thoughts that trigger stress. The third step is practice. We can practice the reaction we desire.
Stress can ruin the moments in life that we should be enjoying. In 2019, we should choose our thoughts and have more joy, and less stress.