What is enough?

What is enough? (I’ll explain what I mean in a minute.)

Are you stressed? I’d guess that to a greater or lesser extent, you are. The world has gone a bit mad hasn’t it? Technology disruption and speed of change are increasing (e.g. AI, robotics), global conflict is worrying and seemingly increasing and social media, particularly with younger people continues to be a factor.

All of these factors (and others) have led the World Health Organisation (WHO) to say that stress is THE health epidemic of the 21st century.

Facts from the US support this with 70-90% of all visits to the doctor are related to stress and 1 in 3 Americans living with extreme stress (American Institute of Stress). 77% suffer physical health issues due to the stress they feel and stress negatively impacts the mental health of 73% of Americans.

Are we much different in the UK? Do you recognise any of this?

Stress adds up but interestingly, it isn’t the events themselves that cause your stress. It’s actually your reaction to the events that causes it. And it isn’t usually even one big event that causes it. It’s the small repeated events that gradually affect you. It’s like bending a piece of metal over and over until it finally snaps. The movement could be small but the metal eventually fatigues enough that it breaks.


⏫ So, going back to the start of the post, what do I mean by enough? ⏫

You may have a partner, you get a house, you have kids, you run a car. You need to get promoted to earn more. School fees to pay, Christmas presents to buy, holidays to go on etc. (Delete as appropriate!)

You take on more, you stay late, you stop taking care of yourself, you skip the gym, the dog gets fewer walks, you don’t see your friends, you make lower quality food choices, you argue with your partner, your kids, you aren’t happy 😭 . You are less productive at work. You lead your team less well. They deliver less.

The problem is you haven’t set any limits. If you don’t have limits, when do you stop? Do you end up burning out? 🔥

❓When is what you have enough❓

Have you ever turned down a promotion? I haven’t. Has this led to unhappiness and stress? Yes.

❓❓When is what you have enough❓❓

Remember that stress is the leading underlying cause of many of today’s major illnesses. You think you don’t have time to change. But if you got tickets to see your favourite band or football team tomorrow evening, you’d go. You’d find a way. You’d make the time.

❓❓❓When is what you have enough❓❓❓

What lies are you telling yourself?

You may not be able to be stress free but you can be less stressed.