Once the long range and short range goals have been considered and established, it is best to shift our attention and emphasis on the process of achieving the goal. The goals have to be carried lightly. If we fix our attention on them too firmly, we will find ourselves too future oriented to even enjoy the present; always going somewhere but never arriving. Looking forward too much to goals in the future leads us to feeling unhappy, stressed and frustrated with the present moment and to make excessive sacrifice to get to our goals. However, when we get to those goals, we always establish new ones and begin the process over.
Focus On The Goals Too Much Increases Stress
If we continue to focus on our future goals, we will forever be stressed over it and we will never enjoy living in the present, because we are preparing to enjoy the future, and that future never comes. Goals are for direction and planning. After they have been established, we need to put them the back of our mind and begin to concentrate on process.
Concentrate On The Process To Achieve The Goals Will Reduce Stress
Concentrating on the process of achieving the goals means immersing ourselves in and thoroughly enjoying what we are doing now, not just as a means to an end but as an experience in and of itself. If we have our direction set by goals and throw ourselves wholeheartedly into the process living and doing, we are most likely to enjoy our lives and achieve our goals instead of getting stressed over whether the goals can be achieved. In many areas of life, we can go too far in eitheir extreme. It is the right balance which is most satisfying.
Thought Stopping Technique To Reduce Stress And Anxiety
Of course, saying we are not going to think about our goals too much is easier than actually doing so. In order to keep the goals and process in perspective we need to be mentally vigilant and refuse to let ourselves become preoccupied with future goals. We can do this by working at being patient and by forcing ourselves not to think about them too much and get stressed over it. If you have trouble doing this, there is a technique called thought stopping which will help your to focus on the process and reduce anxiety.
Thought stopping technique is an anxiety reducing technique that is used to get rid of obsessive ideas or thoughts that sometimes incessantly run through a person’s mind. Often these thoughts preoccupy a person to such an extent that he can’t seem to get them out of his mind. This can be very upsetting and anxiety producing.
Before you start this anxiety stopping technique, ask a friend to standby first. In using the thought stopping technique, you are instructed to get the thought that has been bothering you firmly in your mind. You then signals your friend who shouts very loudly, “Stop! Stop! Stop!”.
This is repeated several times each session for two or three sessions. After a few times, you are instructed to say “Stop” in your mind while your friend will say it out loud. Then you are told to say it in your mind when the thought comes to your during the day. You are also instructed that after you shout “Stop” in your mind you should think of something or do something else that will absorb your interest. This rather simple technique is often very effective in reducing a person of obsessive thoughts which also helps to reduce stress and anxiety.