By Lorraine Arams
People, it is said, are more stressed than ever. Why?
They have every convenience money can buy and beyond. The internet is connecting the world, cell phones allow communication any time, anywhere. At home a machine performs the main process - the dishwasher washes the dishes - no need to manually wash and dry dishes; the clothes washer and dryer washes and dries clothes - there's no need to hang laundry on a clothes line any longer; the car transports people, sometimes multiple people, right to the door of their destination - no need to walk or ride your horse; fridges not only keep things cold, they keep things frozen, dispose cold water and ice and some even have televisions built in - no need to put ice in the ice box any longer and drain off the water from melted ice.
With all these conveniences, why are people feeling as though they can no longer cope? Despite the advancements in technology and "machines", people have not been trained in the most fundamental parts of their lives - handling finances properly, understanding time management, controlling their thoughts and living their lives on their terms.
The result is chaos. By the time they figure it all out, they've wasted a lot of time, money and energy.
What's the solution?
Learning the right things and using that knowledge consistently.
It's not easy though to find that knowledge. We have so much information at our disposal today that it is mesmerizing and, trying to find good advice, is getting more and more challenging. We have to read a lot before we can find something useful.
How do you know when it's the right knowledge?
Because it fits with your life. Let's say you have problems with your finances. You find someone who teaches you how to budget and track your budget - it should be simple to do and the only challenge left for you is to consistently use the budget and tracking to keep on top of your finances so that you don't get into runaway debt.
That's the hard part - consistently using the knowledge we acquire.
They have every convenience money can buy and beyond. The internet is connecting the world, cell phones allow communication any time, anywhere. At home a machine performs the main process - the dishwasher washes the dishes - no need to manually wash and dry dishes; the clothes washer and dryer washes and dries clothes - there's no need to hang laundry on a clothes line any longer; the car transports people, sometimes multiple people, right to the door of their destination - no need to walk or ride your horse; fridges not only keep things cold, they keep things frozen, dispose cold water and ice and some even have televisions built in - no need to put ice in the ice box any longer and drain off the water from melted ice.
With all these conveniences, why are people feeling as though they can no longer cope? Despite the advancements in technology and "machines", people have not been trained in the most fundamental parts of their lives - handling finances properly, understanding time management, controlling their thoughts and living their lives on their terms.
The result is chaos. By the time they figure it all out, they've wasted a lot of time, money and energy.
What's the solution?
Learning the right things and using that knowledge consistently.
It's not easy though to find that knowledge. We have so much information at our disposal today that it is mesmerizing and, trying to find good advice, is getting more and more challenging. We have to read a lot before we can find something useful.
How do you know when it's the right knowledge?
Because it fits with your life. Let's say you have problems with your finances. You find someone who teaches you how to budget and track your budget - it should be simple to do and the only challenge left for you is to consistently use the budget and tracking to keep on top of your finances so that you don't get into runaway debt.
That's the hard part - consistently using the knowledge we acquire.
- Next time you're feeling "over the top stress" - stop - just stop everything you're doing, thinking, feeling - go into numb. In that calm space, think, "What's causing this feeling of overwhelm?" .
- Write the reasons down in one column and in the next write down what you can do about it.
- Pick one.
- Do it.
- Did it solve the problem? If so, you're done. If not pick another solution and try that one. Soon you'll find what you need. Repeat for all the other problems you wrote down.
- Apply the solution consistently. Put it in your calendar. For instance, if you found the right budgeting and finance tracking tool which fits, then make sure you schedule regular maintenance of that system whether it be daily or weekly. And do it each day or each week for the rest of your life - voila! you have your finances under control!
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