Life as a business owner can feel tough and stressful, with high stakes and a lot of pressure to succeed. Peering into your laptop with a furrowed brow, trying to figure out how to make more money or get signups to happen, is how entrepreneurs spend much of their day. This intensity means you take yourself and your work extremely seriously, often to the point of diminishing returns and negative side effects to performance and happiness. When it all feels so intense, how can you remember to chill the hell out?
Bring a more balanced perspective to your life and work by finding tactics to lighten up, to deploy when needed. Copy, paste and edit the square brackets in ChatGPT, and keep the same chat window open so the context carries through. Add as much detail as possible to get a personalized plan for taking yourself less seriously.
Take yourself less seriously and be happier at work
Identify your stress triggers
If you’re in a pattern of getting stressed out, awareness is the first step in making a change. What are the triggers that are popping up every day? Locate the underlying stressors or fears beneath the triggers causing you to resort to seriousness. Figure out what is sending you down that path and get ChatGPT’s ideas for how to move forward instead.
“I often find myself stressed or tense when [describe work situations or triggers that make you stressed]. What are some ways I can approach these situations with a lighter attitude? Give me 5 specific things I can do.”
Get perspective
A client just gave notice and it feels like the end of the world. A team member wants a raise and you’re not sure how to handle it. Some supplies got stuck at customs and now you can’t hit a deadline. So what? You could overthink and worry, playing scenarios out in your head and expending more energy than the situation warrants, or you could zoom out and see the funny side. You could remember that we’re all figuring out life on the planet that is Earth, and no one really has a clue. Learn to laugh at yourself and your circumstances. Put things in perspective and reduce your stress.
“Right now I feel stressed about [describe a specific situation]. Suggest some ways to find humour or a lighter side to it.”
Cultivate a playful mindset
Some people seem to glide through life. Their disposition is open and friendly, they are nearly always smiling, and they are rarely fazed by any news. This playfulness serves them well. Not only are they more enjoyable to be around, but more opportunities flow their way with ease. Ask ChatGPT to help you cultivate a playful mindset, to more effectively handle the ups and downs of business.
“Given that I am usually focused on [describe areas where you are extremely serious or focused], what are three life mantras I can recite to follow a more playful or lighthearted approach?”
Forget perfection
Striving for perfection can make us take ourselves too seriously. When you have to check everything five times before progressing, or you halt publication because of one typo, that need for everything to be exactly right can impede action. Instead, take imperfect action. Sometimes, good enough is good enough. ChatGPT can help you evolve your mindset.
“In my work and life, I often aim for perfection in [describe the areas where you aim for perfection]. I want to ease up on this and accept that good enough can be okay. Ask me a series of questions, one by one, that help me figure out which of these areas truly warrant taking time over and which ones don’t.”
Check in on your seriousness
If you’re following the prompts so far, you might feel physically lighter. That weight that’s been lifted off your shoulders can remain the same, as long as you keep up this newfound demeanour. But make absolutely sure. Take regular pauses to assess how seriously you’re taking yourself and make adjustments as needed. Get ChatGPT to give you the metrics to track.
“I plan to check my seriousness level every [frequency, for example, week, month]. What are 3 questions I should ask myself to gauge if I’m taking life too seriously?”
Feel happier and less stressed by taking yourself less seriously
Taking yourself less seriously doesn’t mean becoming careless or frivolous; rather, it brings balance and perspective that can actually improve your performance and happiness. Use these ChatGPT prompts to cultivate a lighter, more balanced approach to your work and life. Identify your triggers, see the funny side, and cultivate a playful mindset. Next, forget perfection and check your actions on a regular basis. Stop taking yourself so seriously to have more fun doing your thing.
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