The first thing you hear when you’re stressed is to “cool down” or “not to be stressed” and you just hope it was as easy as it sounds. You start to question whether you’re being immature and weak to let something that seems so stupid to consume most of your thoughts and exhaust your cranium. Some of you will start feeling their heart beat faster, their breathing becomes uncontrollable and you cannot stop your tears from falling down. Some of you will try to lock themselves in a corner where no one can see you this vulnerable and weak.
But don’t you see where the problem is? We allow our time to be conquered by our negative, irrelevant thoughts instead of actually finding a solution, but finding a solution requires time, patience and dedication. You have to condition your mind, not just your hair (pun intended). The main purpose of your mind is to protect you from new and uncomfortable stimuli, in which you become used to routine that any change would be perceived as danger. But if you can train your mind to react to those uncomfortable stimuli in a more positive and accepting manner, wouldn’t life be easier?
WHAT?
Conditioning your mind involves training your greatest asset- your brain- to respond to stimuli in a controllable and positive way.
HOW?
- 3 P’s –perspective, practice, persistence
- Perspective stands for the thoughts and ideas that you feed your mind. So if you view yourself as a fearless individual your mind begins to believe it and unconsciously with a matter of time you start to react as one.
- Practice, practice, practice. You will not get it right the first time. It is not easy but with increased attempts your mind adapts to the change hence allowing you to have some sort of control over your reaction.
- Persistence is what keeps you going. You have to be determined to enhance your mental strength, you have to have the willingness to suffer now for long-term benefit, you should acquire the dedication to keep yourself motivated even when everything seems to be falling apart. It is persistence that allows you to maintain your mental strength.
- RUN RUN RUN!
Out of all the exercises, running is the most efficient way, in my opinion, towards amplifying your mental control. Even if it is short distances, just choose a power song (mine is bird set free by SIA) and feel the beat and the lyrics as you run, let it push you forward and once you run that distance challenge yourself, keep running towards longer goal
- Coldest Heart
It might seem hard, but one of the greatest challenge is to be able to get into a cold shower. Aside from the physical benefits of cold showers, you will challenge yourself and try to adapt to the extreme conditions. - 5 Seconds Rule
You have 5 seconds before your brain talks you out of uncomfortable situations, so you either do something or you abstain. You have 5 seconds the minute your alarm goes on before your brain convinces you to tap the snooze button. Do something. Don’t just stay in bed. Don’t let your body surrender what your thoughts are saying and it isn’t easy. - It’s the smallest aspect of your daily life that matter
All of these factors may seem simple, but it’s the simple things in life that matter. Paulo Coelho, in “The Alchemist” states that everything around you conspire to help you pursue your personal legend- whether its positive or negative. All of these acquired habits mentioned above are simple but beneath the surface they reflect how you respond to the major changes occurring around you. Even a cold shower or making your bed in the morning, influences your mindset. When you control your reaction towards these small stimuli, it will become easier for you to respond to a large stimulus, like stress, in a trained manner hence decreasing its negative impact on your wellbeing.
WHY?
Imagine in front of you an empty cup. Gradually, you pour in water until it overflows; this is when you realize that you can’t pour anymore water. Your mind functions the same way. If you allow your mind to be consumed by the negative thoughts you leave little or no room for new ideas and positive thinking. This is why with conditioning, you allow your cranium to empty itself to create space for new habits and positive perspectives.
– Soulayma Zock
“They call me the mother Teresa of the millennials, I don’t know whether it is because I’m the mother of every group, or there’s an old soul living within me. You’ll always find me with a mug and a pile of books walking around, tripping over my own mess. I am Soulayma Zock, currently studying Banking and Finance at LAU and I’ll leave the rest for you to discover.”
