Working in real estate can get stressful. Whether you’re dealing with the aftermath of a bad tenant or working out the kinks of a frustrating deal, the ins-and-outs of investing, no matter how passive, can take their toll. When you feel stressed out, you can so easily lose sight of your goals and what drew you to investing in the first place! It can impair your ability to make good decisions and cause you to do things based on impulses and emotions rather than logic and sound rationale.
For the your best health and the health of your investments, stress management is important!
If you’re a real estate investor who’s found yourself feeling worn down by the grind, these tips might help you step back, get reinvigorated, and back in the saddle:
12 Tips on Reducing Stress for Real Estate Investors
1. Create a Calming Playlist
Music has a lot of power to evoke powerful emotions: and not just intense ones! Studies show that music is remarkable in triggering biochemical stress reducers and generally reducing anxiety and negative feelings. While different genres show better results (classical music always ranks high), you can pick just about any kind of music that resonates with you. It doesn’t even have to be music—if the sound of rain, ocean, or other ambient noise calms you, make a playlist of that, too. Take a few minutes, close your eyes, and listen.
2. Practice Breathing Exercises
Sometimes breathing well is all you really need to reduce stress. While it’s not a long-term solution, breathing helps in the short-term strain of stress. Good breathing can reduce your heart rate, help lower blood pressure, increase the flow of oxygen, and increase focus. Practice breathing with your full diaphragm. Breathing through your nose and out of your mouth, slowly and controlled, as you do when exercising, is also beneficial.
3. Try Progressive Relaxation
This technique is great for when you can’t sleep, but also for reducing stress during the day! Progressive relaxation involves tensing your entire body, starting from your toes and moving all the way up to the top of your head. You hold the tension in your body for a few seconds and then slowly, carefully release that tension from top to bottom.
4. Aromatherapy
Like sound, smells can be powerful for reducing stress. Scents like lavender are proven to reduce stress. Aromatherapy itself can come in many forms—essential oils, bath products, candles, incense, and more. Aromatherapy can even be a natural way to relieve headaches, migraines included! If you’ve never tried aromatherapy, investigate that section of Bath and Body Works and give it a try. It just might work for you.
5. Find Something to Laugh At
Nothing melts away stress like a good laugh. You may be in a bad mood due to stress, but if you can find something to laugh at, you’ll feel a lot better. Whether it’s a joke, a funny video on Youtube, or a good story, find something that makes you laugh. Go to something you know will make you smile.
6. Go for a Walk
Nothing clears the head like a good walk. Find a park or pleasant city sidewalk. Take fifteen minutes and just walk. If you want to pick a destination, pick one—maybe a little coffee shop or a store you’ve always wanted to visit. Maybe you just want to make the block. Either way, just take a little time to enjoy the great outdoors and get the blood pumping. If possible, try to keep your walk quiet and in nature. Avoid crowds and traffic: those might add to your stress!
7. Have a Hot Drink
Hot tea is especially good for reducing stress, but any hot drink can make you feel better. Why? Mostly because they force you to slow down. They make you stop and savor. If you want to reduce stress, stop and make a hot drink and stop while you enjoy it.
8. Exercise
Instead of taking out your stress in unhealthy ways, why not do something good with all that frustration? Whether you’re lifting weights or hitting the treadmill, a solid half hour of exercise will provide that rush of endorphins you need to cut your stress down to size.
9. Daydream or Visualize the Future
Daydreaming isn’t just for middle school anymore. Transporting yourself to somewhere else—whether it’s a fond memory of your last family vacation or looking forward to something in your future—can go a long way to reducing your stress. Positive visualization, focusing entirely on that scene on experience down to the sights, sounds, and smells, can help you relax.
10. Take a Spa Day
If you’re feeling frazzled, maybe you just need a break. Take a day. Even if you don’t go to an actual spa (which is a great idea by the way—you can enjoy a jacuzzi bath, a massage, or another relaxing treatment), you can take some time to take care of yourself. Do a little self-care. Have a meal you enjoy. Take a bubble bath or a long, hot shower. Just do something for you without feeling guilty about it.
Your immediate impulse may be to solve all of your problems right now but you’ll do it better if you step back and clear your head first.
11. Hug it Out
Physical contact with other people is a proven stress reducer: including hugs, kisses, and, yes, sex. Just being near other people who are positive encouragers can help ease the stress in your life with their words and presence!
12. Write Something Down
Journaling can be powerful, but even if you aren’t writing down intimate thoughts and feelings, just the act of writing can reduce stress. If you have a lot of things to do or too many competing thoughts in your head, getting them down can help clear them out and calm your mind. You can create a to-do list for getting back on track, reframe your goals, or just get out everything that’s on your mind.
What are your favorite stress reduction techniques? Share them with us in the comments!
Is investing in real estate causing you constant headaches? Maybe it’s time you turned to turnkey real estate investments—where your passive income is in good hands. Best of all? You can get started now.
