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]