02/05/2023
How heavy is this glass of water? 💧
A psychologist walked around a room while teaching stress management to an audience. As she raised a glass of water, everyone expected they would be asked the "half empty or half full" question. Instead, with a smile on her face, she inquired: "How heavy is this glass of water?" Answers called out ranged from 8 oz. to 20 oz.
She replied, "The absolute weight doesn't matter. It depends on how long I hold it. If I hold it for a minute, it's not a problem. If I hold it for an hour, I'll have an ache in my arm. If I hold it for a day, my arm will feel numb and paralyzed. In each case, the weight of the glass doesn't change, but the longer I hold it, the heavier it becomes."
She continued, "The stresses and worries in life are like that glass of water. Think about them for a while and nothing happens. Think about them a bit longer and they begin to hurt. And if you think about them all day long, you will feel paralyzed - incapable of doing anything." - source unknown.
Drinking a glass of water, we can gain profound insight into the power and importance of picking up and putting down. When we are thirsty, we pick up our glass of water to drink. When we are done drinking, we place our water back down. Why go around carrying our water any longer than we need to? It is unnecessary.
The same truth can be found with our stresses. When we are walking into the door for work, we pick up the stresses of work. When we walk out of the door from work, we place those stresses back down. When we are walking into the door of our home, we pick up the stresses of home. And when we walk out of the door from home, we place those stresses back down all the same.
Stress, in and of itself isn’t a bad thing. In fact, stress can be quite beneficial—it’s the pressure that catalyzes growth. Without a sufficient amount of stress, we might not leave our comfort zone or ever produce our best work. How we perceive and manage our stress, however, is where things can start turning negative. Remember to put the glass down! 🫗
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