This has been perhaps the most stressful two-year period in history to be a small business owner. There have been shutdowns, partial reopening, staff turnover, financial hardships, and that doesn't include any of the changes to personal and family lives that we've all had to deal with. Many owners have been forced to drastically change their business model just to stay afloat. All of these challenges come along with what can be a great deal of stress. Finding ways to relieve that stress is essential to keep your business and yourself, for that matter, moving forward toward better things. Here we take a look at five ways for small business owners to relieve stress.
Change Your Diet
Eating healthy foods can profoundly impact your mood and the way you deal with stressful situations. According to WebMD, "a healthy diet can help counter the impact of stress by shoring up the immune system and lowering blood pressure." Some of the foods that can help with this include citrus, dark chocolate, fish, eggs, and brazil nuts. Fried, sugary and high-fat foods can actually increase stress and anxiety and negatively impact your overall health.
Practice Yoga
"Yoga practice has been linked to not only reducing stress but also lowering blood pressure and heart rate, reducing cortisol levels, reduced anxiety and muscle tension, increased strength and flexibility, slowed aging process, and improving sound sleep." Yoga not only reduces stress but it lowers the chances of you becoming stressed when difficult situations occur. It has a positive impact on both your physical and mental wellbeing, which we could all use right about now.
Mindfulness Meditation
"By lowering the stress response, mindfulness may have downstream effects throughout the body. Psychological scientists have found that mindfulness influences two different stress pathways in the brain, changing brain structures and activity in regions associated with attention and emotion regulation." Just ten minutes a day of mindful meditation can reduce stress levels and prepare you to tackle another day.
Exercise Regularly
"Exercise increases your overall health and your sense of wellbeing, which puts more pep in your step every day. But exercise also has some direct stress-busting benefits. It pumps up your endorphins. Physical activity may help bump up the production of your brain's feel-good neurotransmitters, called endorphins." It's no secret that exercise helps reduce stress. The simple act of getting out built-up energy or aggression can drastically improve your mood.
Take Time Off
"It should come as no surprise that vacations that include plenty of free time bring stress relief, but research shows that a good vacation can lead to the experience of fewer stressful days at least five weeks later. That means that vacations are the gift to yourself that keeps on giving." It doesn't have to be an extended stay in the Hawaiian Islands. A few days here and there or the occasional mental health day can significantly reduce your stress levels.
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