Don't Sweat the Small Stuff...

Don't Sweat the Small Stuff...

and it's all small stuff

After reading the book Don't Sweat the Small Stuff..., by Richard Carlson Ph.D,

I learned many techniques on how to be a more successful and productive person. By

learning how to deal with preasure and conflicts in a more civil way I am able to free my

mind of the daily hassels and stresses that confront me. Some of my favorite techniques

were "Ask yourself the question 'Will This Matter a Year From Now'", "Breathe Before

You Speak", "Become a Less Aggressive Driver", and "The Next Time You Find

Yourself in an Argument, Rather than Defend Your Position, See if You Can See the

Other Point of View First". The new insight that I got using these techniques was

extremely valuable in my relationships with family and friends.

The first technique that caught my attention was "Ask yourself the question 'Will

This Matter a Year From Now'". This is the most valuable tip for life that was ever

brought to my attention. Thinking ahead, even just a month, and trying to look back

"using the time warp game", says Carlson, is the most stress releving approach and has

worked extremely well. Even the day I first read it! This type of understanding is

completely different from what I was lead to believe

in the past because nobody ever told

me how things that are affecting me now be completely irrelevant

to what is really

happening and what is important in my life.

The next meathod that I really enjoyed reading was "Breathe Before You Speak"

because this is something that I have been using in every conversation that I have had

since the reading of the chaper. The short pause that you take really does make a

difference in the flow of conversation. I learned that being listened to, really listened to,

does make me feel completely different in the way that I approch different topics because

what I say is accually being heard and absorbed by the listener. It creates a deeper flow

of conversation, there is a great deal of more appreciation.

Besides conversations going nowhere, so was my driving. It is scary!, but since

reading the section on "Become a Less Aggressive Driver", I can really now try and relax

while driving. My work is based on driving because I deliver percriptions for a local

pharmacy,