Issue link: https://viewer.e-digitaledition.com/i/1159310
THROUGHOU T M Y LIFE and business career the question: "What do you do to relieve stress during exceptionally stressful times?" has been posed to me by friends and colleagues. We all have numerous moving parts in our lives that add anxiety, including family and work obligations. Yet, somehow, we have to attempt to strike a balance between the needs of our families and the needs at work. While change is inevitable and should be embraced as an ordinary fact of life, most folks simply abhor it. This mitigating factor is a disrupter and a definite stressor that will shake up your happy home-life and work-life balancing act. My company is currently going through enormous transition. We are adding new accounting software and designing our new website. This has caused a bit of growing pains for my work family and has reverberated into my personal life as well. While the changes we are implementing will help to right the ship, it comes with loads of stress. All of which I am feeling immensely, but cannot convey. If I'm completely stressed out, unfocused and irritated then those unsettling feelings will flow from me and permeate the entire organization. I know I must lead by example and allow the positive energies to flow and create a healthy atmosphere instead of destabilizing temperaments. One of my guiding principles of destressing is simply to make time for myself. For me I utilize fitness training as my "me-time." I find that pushing really hard into my workouts help to reduce stressful thoughts and assist in refocusing and bringing me back to center. You may be asking how I fit this in to my already demanding schedule. I utilize early mornings as the perfect space to have that "me-time." You may find another route, such as meditation, taking a walk or practicing yoga, work best in helping you regain your composure. Regardless of the medium, the moral is that it is imperative that you make appointments with yourself. Another way I try to alleviate stress within the workplace is by occasiona lly bringing in lunch and dessert for my employ- ees. We get together a nd play a few ga mes giving folks the oppor tunity to win fun prizes like gif t ca rds. I feel like it 's exceptiona lly important to laugh a little, tell a joke or two and create a fun, stress-free work environment. I a lso offer spin and workout classes to a ll of my employees to aid in reducing stress and assist in refocusing. I believe mood trickles down from the top. If I'm happy, optimistic and appear stress-free, then chances are my team will follow suit. It all looks great on paper, but I operate in the real world and know that things don't a lways go according to plan. Using the spin class I teach as an example, I put the class and myself in situations that a re so physica l ly dema nding that they a re practica lly impossible to achieve. It 's the act of giving every thing you've got in the face of that adversity; attempting the impossible and coming up short, but landing in a much better spot than where you bega n. As aptly put by Norman Vincent Pea le, "shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you'll land among the stars." Joni Walton is the owner of Danlee Medical Products and Walton's Total Fitness. Walton holds certifications in Group Fitness and Spin. To learn more about Danlee Medical, call 800-433-7797 or visit danleemedical.com. For more information regarding Walton's Total Fitness, you can contact Joni Walton at 315-430-3655 or joni@danleemedical.com. n BY JONI WALTON Don't Suppress, MANAGE YOUR STRESS 1 4❱❱❱❱❱ S P E C I A L F E A T U R E