So how DO you minimise stress

in this era

of rapid technological development we

are constantly bombarded with

information

and have access to so much content with

much ease

hence we are very much influenced by the

media

in our values and perspectives towards

life

whereas in previous generations their

views would have mostly just been shaped

by the environments in which they grew

in

a study from common sense media states

that in 2012

34 of teens check social media

multiple times daily could you all just

take a quick moment to guess what this

value was

in 2018

well 16 of teens admitted to checking

social media frequently

while 27 said that they checked it after

every hour that’s a total of 43

almost half the teenage population

this may seem like quite alarming data

but truth be told i’m guilty of this too

even though i know the drawbacks of it

social media can be used positively like

to create awareness

take the black lives matter movement for

example

but it’s hard to ignore the drawbacks of

it if

it’s not used mindfully it’s not just

that we waste time

it’s also that we may get influenced and

forget to make our own judgments

and think for ourselves we may adopt

others opinions

without even realizing it

of course it’s possible to be influenced

by your peers offline too

but the pervasiveness of social media

makes it that much

easier it’s important for us to realize

that this is an issue

so that we can make better decisions and

live a more fulfilling life

true to us when the value or perspective

that we’ve been influenced to take

doesn’t align with our personal values

we may experience

stress and somewhat of an identity

crisis

which is defined by oxford dictionary as

a period of uncertainty and confusion

in which a person’s sense of identity

becomes insecure

typically due to a change in their

expected aims or rules in society

to tackle this issue it’s important that

we’re

aware of the information we’re

assimilating and

keep reminding ourselves of what we

stand true to

another important point to note this

time

time is generally very important but

this time of our youth

is an especially important one because

we have both the creativity

and energy to do things to make the most

of our youth

and enjoy it it’s important that we

minimize stress

and maximize achievement you may ask me

shyvana how am i supposed to minimize

stress with all of these things on my

plate

don’t worry i’ve got you covered here

are a few suggestions

openness openness to learning new things

meeting new people and having new

experiences

openness to learning from mistakes as a

student

and generally in life if you have the

mindset

in which you see every circumstance as

an opportunity to grow

i assure you that you will have greater

happiness

and greater mental strength as

winston churchill so rightly said

a pessimist sees the difficulty in every

opportunity

an optimist sees the opportunity in

every difficulty

if you see every difficulty as an

opportunity

i assure you that you’ll have multiple

times the opportunity as others

and zero hurdles because those hurdles

become opportunities themselves

of course it can be difficult to be

optimistic sometimes

well many times actually being teenagers

right

and sometimes when you’re going through

a hurdle or facing a tough time

you just want to listen to sad songs and

wallow in that sorrow for a while

maybe while lying on the floor and

eating a tub of ice cream

or two trust me i’ve been there too

but according to a survey from the

university of michigan’s monitoring the

future study

from 2013 to 2016 this shows

the strongest correlation with

unhappiness intuitively

this may seem weird right isn’t music

supposed to soothe you

but thinking about it you’re actually

isolating yourself by plugging those

earphones in

you may be connecting with the singers

but you’re blocking yourself out from

real people and that human connection

is what is psychologically proven to

help you feel better

it’s good to embrace those emotions

you’re feeling

but it’s important that it’s allowing

you to grow as a person

instead of making you closed-minded

when i’m frustrated and i’m listening to

frustration songs

i’ll admit i do feel comforted

but i reflect and i realize

that this comfort comes from my ego

being massaged by the song

i feel like it’s an okay way to react

just because the singer is true

and i realize that it’s merely that

a reaction not an action

i’m not thinking about what i can do to

make the situation that’s frustrating me

better i’m not even thinking about

others in that situation

and how they may be feeling and i keep

harping on the past which bleeds into

affecting my present

and hence affects my future

okay so now you’re probably thinking i

understand that

but how else do i cope with all of these

things bringing me down

and how do i stay optimistic

how do i not get brought down by the

past or pressurized by the future

well firstly you could try to smile

whenever possible

and connect with others as much as you

can

maybe by giving a high five or a hug

this releases the hormone oxytocin which

is known

to decrease stress the stress hormone

norepinephrine

increase happiness as well as reduce

blood pressure

i’m also going to suggest something that

i know is certainly easier said than

done

but will definitely be beneficial to

your life

try to let go of any circumstance that

may be bringing you down

just as how a lotus pad is able to

deflect water

so that it doesn’t sink try to witness

the situation you’re in

but not get so emotionally entwined into

it by holding on to those emotions

such that you think you can do this

by being aware of your emotions and of

your actions in that situation

because only when you do this will you

be in the emotional state

to find solutions for the situation

think of it like this it’s like when you

put your own hand into fire

others can try to help you get your hand

out but

it’s only you who can make that decision

to

not put it back in and once you have

made that decision

you can enjoy other experiences and

interactions with others

much better without the agony affecting

it

and you’ll have that mental capacity to

find solutions to extinguish that fire

yourself

it’s truly my belief that everything

happens for a reason

and sometimes this belief could also

help you have a more positive outlook

towards life

and i think the best thing to do

is to live in the moment and enjoy this

present moment we only have

so many hours in our lives so wouldn’t

it be best to make as many hours

memorable ones constantly worrying about

the past or future

isn’t going to make this moment

memorable

we can get to the future when it comes

along and

we can cherish the past but not pine

over it so much so that we

forget the present

when getting so many thoughts becomes

detrimental

we have to make a decision to reduce

them

i’ve been doing this through meditation

and i encourage you all

to find what it is that enables you to

stay present

and optimistic because

we can choose to be more positive we can

choose to reduce our stress

we choose who we want to be so

what choice are you going to make

thank you

[Applause]