6 Ways to Use Stress to Your Advantage

Get our top tips to getting the best out of a stressful situation!

1. Choose to have a positive attitude

This can be easier said than done, but consider your anxiety or stress as a positive response that you can use to your advantage – who doesn’t want a clearer mind, sharper focus, stronger stamina and increased determination when facing a challenging situation?

2. Embrace a new perspective

If you can’t change the stress, change the way you respond to it. Is the situation worthy of the stress response, or can you brush it off and move forward?

3. Learn to let go

You were never meant to be in control of the whole world. The world will roll and the business will continue even if you take that break, or drop off the face of the earth. You are the centre of your world, not everyone else’s. Release your grip on the steering wheel of life and free yourself to be out of control sometimes.

4. Focus on certain aspects

Don’t let the stimuli overwhelm you, see the bigger picture and choose an advantageous path forward. If you are faced with a big situation that is impossible to handle at once, break it down into smaller chunks and work through the problem one chunk at a time. One step at a time is a big step forward.

5. Get good sleep

Sleep is essential for replenishing the fuel and energy that the stress response demands. Quality sleep should be excessively high on your priority list. For a good night’s sleep consider taking a warm bath before bed, or writing a to-do-list for tomorrow so that you can keep a clear head and get a peaceful sleep.

6. Talk. Open up.

Chronic or excessive stress can make you feel burnt out or overwhelmed. Sharing the situation with someone close to you can help to clarify the problem, see things from a different point of view and realise the opportunities that may have been there all along, but you just couldn’t see them.