Humorous Stress-Busting Strategies

Humorous Stress-Busting Strategies

“Many home-business owners have told me they find it a constant struggle to find ways to build in some down time to relieve stress and just have a life. In fact, the more creative one is, the harder this will be to do.” – Barbara

“You know you’re pushing too hard when you put the raw corn on the table and microwave the salad,” says one of my readers, adding that a friend of hers actually did this . . . the same day she dropped her bank deposit in the mailbox instead of at the bank.

View of lake

“Peaceful Waters” photo by Rita Werner

When I asked a group of creative people in my home-business network to tell me what they did to gear down or lower their stress level, many commented on the rewards of reconnecting with nature by walking, sitting outdoors, feeding the ducks on the lake, sitting on a pier, going to a park, or watching the birds—things that suggest our natural need to reconnect with God and everything He has made.

General relaxation strategies used by others included swimming, aerobic exercise, gardening, a picnic, a bubble bath, or an enjoyable hobby activity in the evening.

Smart Tip: Lower your stress during the day by taking little five-minute breaks every half hour or so to stretch your muscles and rest your eyes. This is especially important if you do detail work or spend you day in front of a computer screen.

Personally, nothing relaxes me more after a hard day at the computer than an evening of good music or television as I work on one of my cross-stitch embroideries. I can also dump a lot of stress by burrowing into a good mystery by one of my favorite authors, but even here my subconscious mind must be on business because I keep finding great quotes to use in my writing. For example, in Lawrence Sanders’s Timothy’s Game, I found this little gem: “Always expect calamity. Then when a mere misfortune arrives, it’s good news.” (I know a lot of home-business owners who can relate to that one.)

When was the last time you took a vacation? Many home-business owners say they never take a vacation because they don’t have the time or money, but sometimes just getting away for two or three days can make all the difference. As a home-business friend reminded me, “The great advantage of a hotel is that it’s a refuge from a home-based business.” Harry and I used this strategy for years whenever we needed to get away from the demands of our mail order/publishing business. We’d find a comfortable motel in a nearby city with a good pool and hot tub and stay for three or four days, trying out new restaurants and exploring local museums or other spots of interest.

Some of my readers have told me that an exercise program has been very helpful to them in relieving stress. I keep telling myself I’m going to start an exercise program soon . . . as soon as I find time. I really hate to stop doing something I love—which is working—to do something I hate—which is exercising—and am I ever good at finding reasons not to exercise. Actually, I get a lot of exercise every day in my homebased business. The only trouble is it doesn’t burn enough calories. I’m talking about:

Stretching to reach new heights . . .
Leaping to grasp opportunity. . .
Running to meet deadlines . . .
Hopping from one project to another . . .
Struggling with responsibility. . .
Beating the bushes for new business . . .
Jumping to conclusions . . .
Flying off the handle . . .
Pulling myself together, and
Pushing my luck!

It’s easy for me to joke about this topic, but you must never underestimate the importance of managing your stress since the way you deal with this problem will determine how healthy and happy you will be in both your personal and home-business life.

Finding the humor in your daily life is one of the best stress-busting things you can do for yourself. I’ve included splashes of humor in every book I’ve ever written and incorporated it into as many of my articles as appropriate.

An excerpt from Homemade Money: Bringing in the Bucks
Copyright © 2003, 2019 by Barbara Brabec

Related Articles:

Stress and Blood Pressure: What Stress Does to You and What You Can Do About It. How Barbara dramatically lowered her blood pressure by identifying the one thing that was causing most of her stress. (Includes perspective on stress and the 2020 Pandemic).

The Many Faces of Stress and Why Women Handle it Better than Men. An experience with absent-mindedness taught Barbara a new lesson about how stress can affect our daily activities.

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