People seem stressed lately and I think it’s because they feel like things have gotten out of control. The reality is that things were never really as under control as we thought they were. We often live our lives under the “Illusion of Control” that create unrealistic expectations that lead to stress and worry.
Many of our Members feel the unrealistic need to be everything to everybody, or to make sure everyone else is happy or successful. This is a perfect way to face disappointment in life as you realize that these results are out of your control – most are.
Many more things are beyond our control than we realize. The most control we really have is how we respond to the challenges we face. For example:
Stress vs Pressure
The illusion of control makes you feel like you are responsible to control all the variables of life. When we feel like we should be in control of something and we do not know what to do or how to fix it, we feel stress. However, when we realize that we cannot control the outcome in that area, we are freed up to move our focus onto things we truly can control, and we move from a feeling of stress to the pressure to get things done. Stress is bad – pressure is good.
My Mom always said:
“There are two things you are not allowed to worry about; things you can fix, and things you can’t fix.”
– If you can fix them, do it now and focus on other things.
– If you cannot fix it, focus on other things.
So today;
