A few weeks ago, I was talking to a famous psychologist about the human mind and how workload relates to stress and to mental health.
She told me that humans are capable of handling huge amounts of stress, just not for a very long time.
Being under a lot of stress for a short amount of time is actually what we humans are built for. It’s how we stretch our comfort zone and how we become more self-confident as we overcome new challenges in our life.
You probably recognize this. If you think about all the things you went through just to get to the exact point where you are today – you’ll realize that life has challenged you in so many ways already.
You’ve had extreme periods of stress, without a doubt. But they’ve made you a better, stronger, and more resilient person.
Therefore, the danger of stress is not intensity. It’s the duration of the stress you are under that will cause harm.
Whenever you feel like you’re not in control in your life, whether it be business or personal, it’s actually a sign that the period of stress you’re encountering is too long for you.
That is why I believe a successful entrepreneur should take regular breaks. These can be very short breaks – like an hour of sport – or it can be longer breaks like a month of travel in the Andes.
Even the tiniest break can help you feel more in control and enable you to cope with a lot more than you might think.
I protect my breaks with my life because I know that my productivity drops immediately when my stress continues to endure.
This might be the perfect moment to sit down and take a look at your own schedule. Do you build breaks into your week? Do you have a holiday planned? Or are you the kind of person that feels guilty whenever you take a break?
Don’t be afraid of huge amounts of stress. Instead, tackle stress by taking smart and regular breaks.
To freedom,
