1. 每天早晨提前15分钟起床，忙乱的早上将变得从容。
  2. 每天晚上为第二天早上做好准备，摆好早餐桌，做好午餐，准备好第二天要穿的衣服等等。
  3. 不要依赖自己的记忆力。写下约会的时间，到洗衣房拿衣服的时间，图书馆借的书到期的日子等等。
  4. 不要做那些事后会让你说谎的事情。
  5. 打一套备份钥匙。把家门钥匙藏在花园里的一个隐秘地点；除了钥匙圈上的汽车钥匙，再放一把车钥匙在皮夹里。
  6. 常进行预防性维护保养，“在最糟糕的时刻”你的汽车，家电将不会突然完全坏掉，家庭和朋友也不太可能弃你而去。
  7. 为可能遇到的等待时间做好准备。一本书会令你在邮局排队时心情愉悦。
  8. 拖延是压力。想明天做的事，今天就完成；今天想做的事，现在就做。
  9. 事先计划。不要让汽油油量降到四分之一以下；为日常所需用品准备一个“紧急储物架”，不要等到最后一分钟再去补充。
  10. 不要留着坏了的东西。不管是你的闹钟、钱包、鞋带还是汽车雨刷坏了，去修理或者干脆买个新的。
  11. 为约会预留15分钟时间。搭乘国内班机提前一个小时到达机场。
  12. 消除或者减少饮食中的咖啡因含量。
  13. 准备好应急措施，以防万一。 像是“如果我们因为某种原因被延误了，我们将采取如下的措施…..”或者“如果我们商场里走散了，就在这里集合”等等。
  14. 放宽自己的标准。如果周末草没有被割掉，这也并不是世界末日。
  15. 波丽安娜能力（一种对待错误的积极的思考方式）！对于每一件出错的事情，有可能10或50或100个祝福。数数看吧。
  16. 提问。花几分钟来思考别人到底要你做什么，能够节省时间。类似于老的说法“走得越急，到得越晚”。
  17. 说“不’！出于对时间的安排和自我尊重的考虑，拒绝一些额外的项目，社会活动以及邀请。而且，每人每天都需要一些安静的时间来放松和独处。
  18. 关掉手机. 想好好泡个澡，冥想，睡觉或者是没有打扰的读会儿书吗？鼓起勇气暂时中断联系吧（在接下来的一个小时中发生紧急事件的可能性几乎为零）。或者使用一个电话答录机。
  19. 变 “必需” 为“选择”.我们的基本生理需求包括食物、水和保暖，其他的都不是必需的，不要附加其他的“选择”。
  20. 简化，简化，再简化……
  21. 和没有烦恼的人交朋友。没有什么比自寻烦恼的朋友更能让你养成担心的习惯了。
  22. 如果你的工作要求你坐很长时间，定期站起来舒展一下筋骨。
  23. 戴耳塞。如果你在家需要安静,戴一副耳塞。
  24. 睡眠充足。如果需要，设定闹钟提醒您睡觉时间。
  25. 保持良好的秩序。整理你家和工作的地方以确保你知道什么东西在什么地方。把东西放回原来的地方，你就不必担心丢失他们了。
  26. 在压力下，大多数人都会急促的浅呼吸。当你处在这样的状态下，身体中的废气不能及时排除，氧气不足，很容易造成肌肉紧张。注意自己的呼吸，特别是处于高压之下时。如果你发现自己胃部肌肉纠结，你的呼气短浅，放松全身肌肉，做几个深呼吸。
  27. 把你的想法和感觉写在日记本或者废纸上，这样可以帮助你理清事情或者给你全新的视角。
  28. 需要放松的时候，试试下面的瑜伽术。 用鼻子深吸气，并数到8，然后张开嘴唇，缓缓的呼气同时接着数到16，或者更长。注意力集中在悠长的呼吸声中，并体会紧张感逐渐消失。重复这个过程10次。
  29. 假象你出于自己正担心的事情中。比如：在公众场合发表演说之前，把整个过程在你的脑海中形象化，你会发现将要进行的一切都很熟悉，紧张感也就随之消失了。想象你穿什么衣服，听众看起来什么样，你怎样演讲，人们会提设么么问题，你怎么回答等等。
  30. 当你被“必须完成这项工作”的压力困扰时，转变–有意识的转换行为和环境–可能正是你需要的。
  31. 说出你的问题。和信赖的朋友导论你的问题能使你厘清思路，集中精力解决问题。
  32. 最直接的避免不必要压力的方法就是选择你需要和希望的工作、家庭或休闲环境。如果你不喜欢成天坐在办公桌前，就不要接受这样的工作；如果你不喜欢谈论政治，就不要和热衷于谈论政治的人结交。
  33. 学着活在当下。
  34. 每天都做一些你真正享受的事。
  35. 做每件事情的时候都投入一盎司的爱。
  36. 洗个热水澡（或是在夏天洗个凉水澡）来放松疲劳。
  37. 为别人做一些事。
  38. 注重于理解别人而不是被理解，注重于爱别人而不是被爱。
  39. 注意你的外表和形象。良好的仪容能使你感觉更好。
  40. 合理安排一天的时间。避免行程安排得过于紧凑，工作间隙安排出能喘口气的时间。
  41. 变得更加灵活。不是所有的事都值得做的完美，有些问题需要变通。
  42. 消除消极的自我暗示: “我太老了，不能……,” “我太胖了，不能……” 等等。
  43. 周末时改变一下你的生活节奏。如果你的工作节奏缓慢而固定，在周末为计划之外的事情留一些时间；如果你的工作紧张，需要和很多人打交道，放假时找一些平和的独处的时间吧；如果你觉得工作没有进展，那么周末处理一些公事能带给你满足感。
  44. “管好每一分钱，一块钱自然就不用操心了”，也就是说，管好今天的事，昨天的和明天的事自然就不用担心了。
  45. 每次做一件事。当你和一个人在一起时，不要想其他人、其他事。当你忙着做一个项目的时候，集中精力做这个项目，忘掉其他所有的事。
  46. 每天自己一点私人时间安静的反省。
  47. 如果需要完成一个及不愉快的任务，尽早完成它，这样当天的剩余时间 就能毫无忧虑的度过了。
  48. 学习让合适的人分担工作职责。
  49. 别忘了午休。将身体和思绪从工作中抽离，哪怕只有15或20分钟。
  50. 不要只从1数到10.再说或做一些可能使情况更糟的话或事之前从1 数到1000。
  51. 对人和事怀着宽容之心。接受我们活在一个不完美的世界上的事实。
  52. 用乐观的态度看待世界。相信大多数人都尽了自己最大的努力。

52 Proven Stress Reducers

  1. Get up fifteen minutes earlier in the morning.  The inevitable morning mishaps will be less stressful.
  2. Prepare for the morning the evening before.  Set the breakfast table, make lunches, put out the clothes you plan to wear, etc.
  3. Don’t rely on your memory.  Write down appointment times, when to pick up the laundry, when library books are due, etc.
  4. Do nothing which, after being done, leads you to tell a lie.
  5. Make duplicates of all keys.  Bury a house key in a secret spot in the garden and carry a duplicate car key in your wallet, apart from your key ring.
  6. Practice preventive maintenance.  Your car, appliances, home, and relationships will be less likely to break down/fall apart “at the worst possible moment.”
  7. Be prepared to wait.  A paperback can make a wait in a post office line almost pleasant.
  8. Procrastination is stressful.  Whatever you want to do tomorrow, do today; whatever you want to do today, do it now.
  9. Plan ahead.  Don’t let the gas tank get below one-quarter full; keep a well-stocked “emergency shelf” of home staples; don’t wait until you’re down to your last bus token or postage stamp to buy more; etc.
  10. Don’t put up with something that doesn’t work right.  If your alarm clock, wallet, shoe laces, windshield wipers – whatever- are a constant aggravation, get them fixed or get new ones.
  11. Allow 15 minutes of extra time to get to appointments.  Plan to arrive at an airport one hour before domestic departures.
  12. Eliminate (or restrict) the amount of caffeine in your diet.
  13. Always set up contingency plans, “just in case.” (“If for some reason either of us is delayed, here’s what we’ll do. . .” kind of thing.  Or, “If we get split up in the shopping center, here’s where we’ll meet.”)
  14. Relax your standards.  The world will not end if the grass doesn’t get mowed this weekend.
  15. Pollyanna-Power!  For every one thing that goes wrong, there are probably 10 or 50 or 100 blessings.  Count ‘em!
  16. Ask questions.  Taking a few moments to repeat back directions, what someone expects of you, etc., can save hours.  (The old “the hurrieder I go, the behinder I get,” idea.)
  17. Say “No!”  Saying “no” to extra projects, social activities, and invitations you know you don’t have the time or energy for takes practice, self-respect, and a belief that everyone, everyday, needs quiet time to relax and be alone.
  18. Unplug your phone.  Want to take a long bath, meditate, sleep, or read without interruption?  Drum up the courage to temporarily disconnect.  (The possibility of there being a terrible emergency in the next hour or so is almost nil.)  Or use an answering machine.
  19. Turn “needs” into preferences.  Our basic physical needs translate into food, water, and keeping warm.  Everything else is a preference. Don’t get attached to preferences.
  20. Simplify, simplify, simplify. . .
  21. Make friends with non-worriers.  Nothing can get you into the habit of worrying faster than associating with chronic worrywarts.
  22. Get up and stretch periodically if your job requires that you sit for extended periods.
  23. Wear earplugs.  If you need to find quiet at home, pop in some earplugs.
  24. Get enough sleep.  If necessary, use an alarm clock to remind you to go to bed.
  25. Create order out of chaos.  Organize your home and workspace so that you always know exactly where things are.  Put things away where they belong and you won’t have to go through the stress of losing things.
  26. When feeling stressed, most people tend to breathe short, shallow breaths.  When you breathe like this, stale air is not expelled, oxidation of the tissues is incomplete, and muscle tension frequently results.  Check your breathing throughout the day,  and before, during, and after high-pressure situations.  If you find your stomach muscles knotted and your breathing is shallow, relax all your muscles and take several deep, slow breaths. 
  27. Writing your thoughts and feelings down (in a journal, or on paper to  be thrown away) can help you clarify things and can give you a renewed perspective
  28. Try the following yoga technique whenever you feel the need to relax. Inhale deeply through your nose to the count of eight.  Then, with lips puckered, exhale very slowly through your mouth to the count of 16, or for as long as you can.  Concentrate on the long sighing sound and feel the tension dissolve.  Repeat 10 times.
  29. Inoculate yourself against a feared event.  Example:  before speaking in public, take time to go over every part of the experience in your mind.  Imagine what you’ll wear, what the audience will look like, how you will present your talk, what the questions will be and how you will answer them, etc.  Visualize the experience the way you would have it be.  You’ll likely find that when the time comes to make the actual presentation, it will be “old hat” and much of your anxiety will have fled.
  30. When the stress of having to get a job done gets in the way of getting the job done, diversion – a voluntary change in activity and/or environment – may be just what you need.
  31. Talk it out.  Discussing your problems with a trusted friend can help clear your mind of confusion so you can concentrate on problem solving.
  32. One of the most obvious ways to avoid unnecessary stress is to select an environment (work, home, leisure) which is in line with your personal needs and desires.  If you hate desk jobs, don’t accept a job which requires that you sit at a desk all day.  If you hate to talk politics, don’t associate with people who love to talk politics, etc.
  33. Learn to live one day at a time.
  34. Every day, do something you really enjoy.
  35. Add an ounce of love to everything you do.
  36. Take a hot bath or shower (or a cool one in summertime) to relieve tension.
  37. Do something for somebody else.
  38. Focus on understanding rather than on being understood; on loving rather than on being loved.
  39. Do something that will improve your appearance.  Looking better can help you feel better.
  40. Schedule a realistic day.  Avoid the tendency to schedule back-to-back appointments; allow time between appointments for a breathing spell.
  41. Become more flexible.  Some things are worth not doing perfectly and some issues are fine to compromise upon.
  42. Eliminate destructive self-talk:  “I’m too old to. . .,”  “I’m too fat to. . .,” etc.
  43. Use your weekend time for a change of pace.  If your work week is slow and patterned, make sure there is action and time for spontaneity built into your weekends.  If your work week is fast-paced and full of people and deadlines, seek peace and solitude during your days off.  Feel as if you aren’t accomplishing anything at work?  Tackle a job on the weekend which you can finish to your satisfaction.
  44. “Worry about the pennies and the dollars will take care of themselves.”  That’s another way of saying:  take care of the todays as best you can and the yesterdays and the tomorrows will take care of themselves.
  45. Do one thing at a time.  When you are with someone, be with that person and with no one or nothing else.  When you are busy with a project, concentrate on doing that project and forget about everything else you have to do.
  46. Allow yourself time – everyday – for privacy, quiet, and introspection.
  47. If an especially unpleasant task faces you, do it early in the day and get it over with, then the rest of your day will be free of anxiety.
  48. Learn to delegate responsibility to capable others.
  49. Don’t forget to take a lunch break.  Try to get away from your desk or work area in body and mind, even if it’s just for 15 or 20 minutes.
  50. Forget about counting to 10.  Count to 1,000 before doing something or saying anything that could make matters worse.
  51. Have a forgiving view of events and people.  Accept the fact that we live in an imperfect world.
  52. Have an optimistic view of the world.  Believe that most people are doing the best they can.