Stress is Both Good and Bad ? The 3rd Law of Personal Energy

By Gerry Geneva

Stress gets a bad rap. Stress in fact is both good and bad. At its most basic level if you think about it, you?ll see that we don?t learn or grow without some element of stress. When we are forced beyond our comfort zone, in every area of life, we can see its then that we grow and progress.

However, when unchecked, when exposed to a chronic and unrelenting high level of stress, our body begins to break down.

Its important to note that?s we experience stress across all area of our life, be it physical, emotional, mental, or spiritual. How we cope with stress has an incredible affect on how much energy we have. I?ve outlined several examples of how energy are connected.

Physical Stress - Working out your bicep is good, however, if you don't take a break and get some rest, you will damage the muscle causing yourself a lot of pain, and a reduction in your ability to lift heavy weight. Interestingly enough, many Olympic athletes lift weights only once a week or less because they know the importance of rest and renewal.

Mental Stress - Its common knowledge that the brain is extremely powerful. From mathematical analysis to creative thinking, you will see your performance increase dramatically, in addition to your energy levels, if you can learn to systematically give your mind the rest that it needs.

Keep this mind that some of the greatest thinkers of our time (i.e. Ford, Einstein, Edison, Churchill) were notorious for taking extended breaks in the middle of some of their biggest challenges. They found and often wrote about how when they took some time away from the challenge and gave themselves a break (in the form of naps, walks, socializing, etc), they came back with a different perspective, a clearer vision, and a deeper level of energy to solve the challenges of the day.

I?m not saying use this as an excuse to sleep all afternoon. And its a recommendation that you may not want to bring up with your boss, but the point is still relevant. Take more thought of your mental health. You mind is very powerful, but without the proper care and rest, it can be a tremendous energy drain.

Emotional Stress ? If you have gone through a trying experience such as the death of a loved one or anything equally challenging, you are very much aware that your emotions play a large part in how you feel everyday. Likely you?ve experienced the energy drain you feel after dealing with a difficult person, or having an intense argument with a loved one, or experiencing a devastating financial setback.

However, its not the experience itself that is most telling, but what we do about it. You?ll likely recall that many of the most accomplished people you can think of achieved great success only after excruciating setbacks. I won?t go into a lot of detail, but know that we can gain energy from some of the most trying times in our lives, instead of losing it. It?s a matter of managing emotional energy, as opposed to managing an emotionally stressful situation.

Spiritual Stress - By spiritual I don't necessarily mean your faith or religion, although that plays a part. What I mean by spiritual is the deep convictions each of us holds dear to our hearts. Are you being true to yourself in your career? Are you on purpose? Are you striving towards a goal or vision of the future you desire for yourself and your family?

Spiritual energy is one of the most pure and consistently dependable sources of personal energy that we can experience. By becoming more congruent with our deepest desires and our truest self we will find stores of energy we didn?t know we had.

In conclusion, its important to know that stress comes in both good and bad forms. If we can learn to harness all 4 sources of energy and correctly deal with all 4 types of stress, we will find that he have more personal energy that we thought possible in our lives. - 29964

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