We all face anxiety.
Anxiety, life and business challenges are omnipresent. Particularly as life becomes more challenging with children, ageing parents, debt, managing our personal health and the myriad of issues facing a business owner.
As business owners, we typically feel that we need to be stoic all the time. We wear our mask and don’t dare show the world our vulnerability.
But how long can you keep up this charade and what are you doing to fix the root cause in the meantime.
Simply ignoring won’t necessarily make anxiety go away.
Anxiety doesn’t spare anyone.
No-one is immune.
But it works out that things are rarely as bad as they seem or as good as they seem.
The first step is to recognise anxiety.
Only in recognition can we identify it and target it.
Here are some practical techniques I’ve learnt along the way to help myself and share with clients.
Noting is a great ‘in the moment’ technique to combat anxiety. Simply note whether an anxious moment is a thought or a feeling. A thought might just be a negative thought or daydreaming. A feeling might be a memory or a fear of a future event. By ‘noting’ whether an anxious moment is a thought or a feeling, you can identify the nature of it – recognise it – and let it go. Think of it being a thought bubble that you prick with a pin.
Another technique I’ve found useful is to compartmentalise your activities into one day. What are the specific tasks I need to attend to today – and only today - and what do I need to do to execute them to the required standard. This powerful technique attempts to block out noise from the future and past that may make you freeze.
Mini resets are another technique where you plan scheduled breaks into your day to reset yourself. This could be as often as every hour to mid-morning, lunch and mid-afternoon. You can even schedule ‘crash zones’ where you schedule a half-day or full-day to crash and completely recover.
Meditating daily, particularly in the morning, creates a forum to build a platform for dealing with anxiety.
Surrounding yourself with people that make you feel safe, secure and happy is critical. Try and minimise or eliminate being around people that make you anxious.
Being kind to yourself and scheduling regular activities that provide joy really helps. Do this without guilt.
And finally set an affirmation that reminds you that things will get better.
My affirmation is “The sun will rise tomorrow and I will be there to face the day with new opportunity”
I’d love to hear your affirmations on tackling anxiety.
Email me at darren@darrenkbourke.com to schedule a meeting (at no cost or obligation) to discuss how I can help you achieve your business and personal goals this financial year.