Planning to destress

I read a lot about happiness, what it means, and what we can do to be happier. One of the recurring themes is the importance of planning and setting goals. Plans and goals for everything from the everyday to the life-changing. Not only does having plans and goals make us happier, it can reduce anxiety and stress, and make us more resilient.

Some will argue that we can plan too much, be too focussed on the future, too obsessed by achieving, and that by setting plans and goals we lose our sense of spontaneity. And I would agree if having plans and goals becomes the plan and the goal. By knowing what we want and when we want it, we know the direction to take as well as giving purpose to what we are doing now. It also means that when now becomes chaotic and disorganised, somewhat out of our control, we can remember what we want from now as it takes us one step closer to fulfilling what we set out to do.
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So when you’re feeling a little lost, anxious, unhappy, stressed, take a moment to think about your next step and the one after that and one more for good measure. Know what you want for now, for this year, for this decade, for this lifetime. Notice as you focus on the plans and goals, how you are in control, feeling stronger, resilient, happy, calm, relaxed. And suddenly, you are on your way, aren’t you?