Hakeem Hacks: 5 Organization Steps to Stay Stress-Free!

Stress is inevitable and various things in life trigger it. Some people react with anger, others get frustrated and some weep out their worries. It is important to practice stress management in order to live a healthier and more productive lifestyle. It is widely known that staying organized is a great stress-reliever and today in Hakeem Hacks, we will tell you exactly how to do that.

“If it’s in the future and you can’t change it, there’s no point in worrying about it. If it’s the past and you can’t go back to alter it, there’s no point in worrying about it.”

Step 1: Find a medium of channeling the anxiety out.

Day to day stress builds up anxiety, depression and other forms of cognitive complications that can have a great impact on your life. The first thing to do is to narrow the problem down, which means to get to the root cause of what is causing the stress. There can be multiple things and they can be tackled one day at a time. The golden rule is to understand if you can change the outcome or not. If you can, work on it and imagine a work-load being taken out of the stress room in your brain. If you can’t, then we move to the second and most important part of step one- which is to make your body get rid of the stress in the best way possible. After having a hard day some people watch a good movie, spend time with friends, exercise, and even treat themselves to good food. The point is to make sure that you’re bottling up your emotions inside. Healthy stress-relieving exercises include communication, therapy, meditation, sports activities, art and bonding with nature.

Step 2: De-clutter your house, office and other spaces.

Too much clutter can cause frustration, it is harder to manage and makes searching for things ten times more hectic. To make your life hassle-free, organize the space you spend most of your time in. Breaking it down the Hakeem way, de-clutter in the following manner:

·         Make a pile of things that you do not need. (Tip: If you haven’t used it in two years, you probably won’t be using it anytime soon!)

·         Give those things to friends or distribute them among the needy. (Give yourself a pat on the back. The hard part is almost over.)

·         Make an organization schedule. Take it one room at a time. (Tip: Make the entire family a part of the process. Reward children for staying organized.)

·         Classify your possessions on the basis of color, usage, size, etc.

·         Pile the stuff you seldom use in storage boxes and label them!

Note: If you or any one near you is suffering from anger management issues, it is important to seek advice from a health care professional.

Step 3: Make time your best friend.

Set realistic goals and make room for external events that suddenly pop up. If you have included a potential delay in your work calendar or an amount gap in your finances you won’t be stressed out if something unplanned comes up. Take out time for yourself to deeply think about your accomplishments of the day. Some people prefer waking up fifteen minutes early to kick-start the day.

Step 4: Prioritize.

Often in life, your plate can get full and it is only natural to panic and cause your body to stress out. Prioritize your work, events and daily life happenings. What is important should come first so that you don’t feel bad if any of the unimportant tasks are left incomplete. A great mental-health hack is to learn how to say no. This can only be accomplished if you put you and your mental health first.

Do you know that therapy can help you master your thoughts? Learn more about it from a therapist herself!

Read: Ms. Danah Ghadban: Normalizing therapy, one client at a time.

Step 5: Organize your thoughts.

Organization is not only limited to your living space. It is mainly about your mind. Overthinking can lead to paranoia, anxiety, depression, and anger. Keep a journal and filter out the negative and useless thoughts. Your mind is a temple and only the best thoughts get to stay in it.

Now that you’ve learned the secret to stress-free living through organization, it’s time to turn your life around.

Note: If you feel that your mind is getting the better of you and that your thoughts are greatly damaging your persona and impacting your loved ones, seek help from a good psychologist near you.