When it feels like you’ve got too much going on, sometimes all it takes is writing things down. As a result, this can calm your anxiety and help to organize your stressful day-to-day life.
Stress Relief
Keeping everything inside your head can be very stressful at times. You need ways to express yourself and also visualize exactly what is stressing you out. In some cases when you have a lot to do in any given day, writing down a to-do list might be one of the best ways to get the day started. Not only do you then have everything written down in a way that makes it clear exactly what needs to be done, but also now you can rest your brain more in the sense that there’s no longer a scare that you might forget your tasks.
Whether you are a student who has a lot of homework and studying to do, or just have a lot of groceries to buy on that day, making a list stating specifically what needs to be done and/or bought can truly be helpful. Especially as a student, you have constant pressures on every subject to keep up with all the homework and extra activities that need to be done within certain time frames. It can be extra stressful when a time limit is put into the picture of doing specific tasks, and no one knows this better than a student with a deadline. One of the best ways to keep up with everything can be to just make sure everything is written down in a clear and concise manner. Once you have everything on paper, then you can take somewhat of a step-back and breathe for a second. Then you can get to work to make sure you cross every task off that list one by one. You take things slowly, perhaps even take small breaks in-between, but at the very least you know that now everything that you need to do is clear to you. That confusion that was giving you so much anxiety has now slightly withered away simply by making a list and writing things down.
Clear Benefits
One of the benefits includes you being able to prioritize what’s important to you in a more thoughtful manner. Making a list can also help you figure out in detail what is needed for you to achieve a certain goal you have set up for yourself. This all helps with reducing your anxiety on your everyday life. Having structure to your life is usually a huge positive for most people, and something that perhaps they didn’t even know they were lacking to begin with.
Moreover, at the end of the day when you look back at what you have achieved in the last 24 hours, by having written a list you can tell in a precise manner exactly what you’ve achieved so far. That can be a nice feeling and also it can help you feel a sense of fulfillment. Plus, since procrastinating is a huge bummer and something that a huge number of people, but especially students, go through, lists can help reduce that wasted time as well. Once you have a clear set of goals then it can seem less scary to jump into actually doing them. Hence, a direct link can be established between making a list and the action of doing what you wrote down. Don’t just ignore the possibility than lists can be helpful in most scenarios that you’re facing any day. The benefits are clear and if in case later you find out that this simply isn’t working for you, then obviously you can just stop. However, giving it a fair shot seems like the right thing to do if you’re constantly stressed about chores, tasks or studies you must do on a daily basis.
Different Kinds of Lists
To-Do lists are not the only kind of lists that can be helpful to you. “Bucket-lists” are something that a lot of people do as well. It might seem like the nature of a bucket-list is rather grim, but it does help a lot of people with figuring out long-term goals and dreams. Additionally, a lot of people who love art make a lot of “best-of lists”. Whether it’s about your favorite movies or music albums of the year, this kind of list can not only help you figure out your preferences but also later on it can be a good reminder of what you liked from any given period of time. Some people also make lists by brainstorming their ideas about something they need to visualize.
All in all, try starting small by just making a to-do list for today, and see just how many of your goals you’ve accomplished. There is a good chance that you will go to sleep feeling more accomplished than the previous forgettable day in which you might not even remember what you had for breakfast.
Picture: Shutterstock / ID: 1755781130
It can be a stressful time at work after the holidays. Try listening to some music?
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