Stress and time management are two terms that often seem to go together. Let's talk about stress first. Stress isn't always negative. It is simply the body's way of dealing with and responding to change. Positive stress stimulates us and gets us energized and ready to face challenges. Negative stress on the other hand can mean that we are overloaded and need to cut back.

When we lack proper time management skills we typically end up experiencing bad stress. Bad stress has physical and emotional consequences. You may get headaches, may be tired all of the time, you may also become edgy and short tempered. The good news is if your stress is due to poor time management, than that is a problem which can be fixed.

To begin elimination of time management related stressors in your life, it is important to:

1. Figure out exactly what your stressors are and identify them: You have to first determine what is bothering you before you can change it. For example, are you stressed that you never have enough time to get the laundry done? Whatever it is, identify it, then you can begin to work on it.

2. Determine how you are currently coping with stress: Is your response to sulk or yell at your spouse or kids? Identify how you react both positively and negatively to stress. Knowing how you react to your stressors, will help you to eliminate the negative and replace it with a positive.

3. Change: Simply change. Either change the situation or at least how you respond to it. Instead of yelling at your spouse and children when you fail to get the laundry done, try delegating the task to someone else, or just realize that hey, you can’t do everything and change your reaction.

4. Develop ways to cope: Again, if you find yourself struggling with time management and the subsequent stressors, than you must find positive ways to change or cope with them. Delegation is great, so is outsourcing, whether for business or home tasks. Another great way to cope is to change your mindset and manage your time the best that you can. Realize that there are only so many hours in the day, and that you should only focus on the most important tasks for that day.

Poor time management can lead to the development of bad stress. To combat it, it is important to prioritize and plan your time. Other great ways to eliminate or lower time management stress is to take care of yourself.

This means eating healthy meals and snacks on a regular basis, getting enough rest, doing things that are fun and relaxing, and sometimes, simply getting away from it all. All of these things will help you to efficiently finish tasks and follow through on set tasks. Essentially, a healthy body and a healthy mind go a long way in helping you conquer your stress and time management problems.

 

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