One of the best things I learned when I was going through professional personal development training at a large accounting firm I worked at, was to take a pause before speaking, or in between sentences. It’s actually super helpful. It helps other people comprehend what you are saying. It also helps with not blurting things out! Haha, I certainly have done that, I am sure we all may have at one point or another. Pausing will save you the embarrassment! But, another thing that pausing can help with, is gathering your thoughts, allowing you to breathe, and manage your stress.
During the holidays, situational stress is real. You got your mom asking you what dish you’re going to make or bring, or better yet, you’re hosting! Or…maybe you’re worried about disappointing someone, or you have nowhere to go, or that family member just says something dumb! Stress arises…so, how can you manage this? I suggest pausing…as if it was a button on your music player/dvr, etc. Hit pause, take a deep breath, and exhale. The reason I am suggesting this is, you need to have some tools in your back pocket to deal with this situational stress…and this is one thing that really helps! It allows you to reframe your thoughts, it allows other people listen to what you just said, or it allows you to just simply, take a break from that stressful thing.
Hope this helps. Hit reply and let me know if you have found other ways to deal with situational stress! Maybe a morning meditation routine? 😉