STRESS: We all have it in some form or another. And while a little bit of stress can actually be good for us (helping to challenge you and stretch you outside your comfort zone), too much of a good thing can just be downright dreadful.

Stress comes in many forms, but it is always an expression of resisting what’s going on around you. Really think about that — when are you stressed? It’s only when you’re believing life should be one way, and life’s believing something different.

Have you ever thought…

“I want my boss to be more flexible.”

“I want my partner to be less critical.”

“I want my family to be more understanding.”

“I want my neighbor to be more respectful.”

“I want my body to be thinner.”

Stress is simply an expression of resisting “what is”. So whatever you’re stressed about in any given moment, you’re simply pushing against reality. And in this game of life, unfortunately this thinking will always have you lose. That is, until you can begin working with your stress, and not against it.

What do I mean by that? Well, let’s explore 5 ways you can start to adjust your perspective and actually turn your stresses into successes. Here’s how…

(Be forewarned: I’m going to be using the word “God” freely to represent that mysterious “something” that makes up the Universe. So just replace this with whatever word fits your beliefs and spiritual sensibilities from here forward.)

1. TURN ENEMIES INTO “ACTORS”

“All the world’s a stage!” they say. So let’s start to envision the challenging people in your life as merely performers in your own life’s theater.

Just look around and imagine every single person as God in disguise: your boss, your neighbor, your lover and you friends. What if your enemies were God? Your child? Your landlord? Your cat? Or what if your mother-in-law was nothing other than God in drag?

What if every relationship was in fact sent here for your own good — and crafted out of utter adoration for you and your life’s unique purpose? What if every player in your “Purpose Play” was sent as a gift — choreographed by the Universe, and only here to help you learn what you came here to this Earth School to learn?

Making this mental shift of turning enemies into angels can actually help you embrace, enjoy and get excited when challenges come your way. It can help you feel connected and uplifted in those hard times, instead of feeling like you’re alone and drowning.  And doesn’t that sound like a pretty darn great thing?

2. TELL A NEW TALE

Now that you’ve transformed your life’s actors into inspiring messengers, let’s start to craft the details of your own divine story. As we move deeper into your world’s stage, what tale could you begin to tell? If you could rewrite your own fairytale into one that makes all of your life’s circumstances make perfect sense and be “on purpose”, what story would you tell? How could you reframe your life’s journey into one that is positive, playful and with the happiest of endings?

If you stop to think about it, life is nothing but a sequence of beliefs that fire through your brain. Everything is simply an interpretation of your very own thoughts. When you realize that you can change the story (and ending) at any moment you wish, life can be far more satisfying and way less stressful.

3. LOOK FOR THE LESSON

Take a look at your most challenging moments — either a current one, or perhaps something long, long ago. If you had to find something positive out of that painful situation, what might that be? Even if you can only find one small, slim glimmer of light in an otherwise seemingly dark night of the soul, what would that slim, silvery sliver say to you? (or simply try saying that sentence 30x fast while eating peanut butter!)

You might also want to explore anything good that came from a past hurt or humiliation. In hindsight, did you gain anything good? Perhaps you found greater compassion? Built inner strength? Had a child? Learned humility? Changed careers? Or simply learn what NOT to do, faster?

And if you’re currently in the midst of a stressful scenario, take a look at it from a neutral, loving, God’s-eye perspective. What do you see? From this vantage point, can you spot the good amidst the gunk?

Now fast forward several years down the road: once your current challenge is over and done, imagine that a beautiful blossoming has occurred. What good is taking place that you simply couldn’t see before? Are you gaining greater strength, sensitivity, spirituality or savvy? What happy ending could you write for your current struggle that would allow this present moment to become a bigger blessing?

4. PIVOT YOUR PERSPECTIVE

Now imagine one of your life struggles as a big, giant coin. If you’ve felt stress, dread, panic, fear, sorrow, sadness, depression or grief at any time in the past, then you were simply looking at only one side of life’s coin.

And while those pains you felt are most definitely real, they’re always only half of the story. The habit of only looking at one side of any situation is just that: a habit. Most likely you were innocently trained to do this from the time we were born up until reading this article. And while un-training this habit can feel daunting, it is 100% doable.

You see, the more you practice looking on the bright side or drinking from a cup half-full, the more pathways you build in your brain that makes this activity so much easier.

There’s an opposite to everything, no matter how bad, painful or scary. And luckily, you have the option to fixate upon whichever side you choose. So start searching for that elusive and opposite side of your life’s coin – you may be surprised at what you find!

5. GET OUT OF YOUR  HEAD

Unless you’re very diligent, you’re likely spending most of your waking moments swimming around in your head. And from what I’ve realized over the past 20 years of inner exploration is that my head is what gets me into all my many messes!

Your brain has a sneaky way of spinning things around so that it wreaks havoc and cause stress for you at every opportunity. Breathing into your heart and staying connected to your truest expression — love — can be the way out of this suffering.

Dropping the war with the world around you, and going inside your very own Soul for sustenance can change your life in radical, wonderful ways. So, what is it that you need from the world around you?

•  “I need my partner to love and understand me.”

•  “I need my boss to be less controlling.”

•  “I need my family to stop judging me. “

Whatever it is, go within yourself first. Are you doing these things for yourself right now?

• Are you loving and understanding yourself thoroughly?

• Are you being less controlling, with yourself and others?

• Are you utterly non-judgemental of your family and yourself?

The real work begins within — it begins with YOU.

The longer you wait for the world outside of you to give you what you desire, the more hopeless you can become, and the more time you can waste. So become your own best support, teacher, friend and guide. Start by living all those things you’ve been expecting from others, and you’ll become the world’s aficionado on love, compassion, understanding and joy. And, best news of all: as you change inside, so will the world change outside.

So today, pick just one of the 5 tips above and make a plan to incorporate it’s insights into your life, routine and thinking. Simple shifts in perspective and understanding can literally move aside any of life’s most challenging of mountains.

Then I invite you to share your insights, inspirations, challenges or triumphs in the comments section below. We can’t do it alone, and your thoughts may be just the thing to help another unfold and blossom into their own beautiful and truest self-expression.

I look forward to hearing from YOU!