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Rick McCray
  • Ellicott City, MD
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STRESS

Rick McCray
  • Ellicott City, MD
Posted Mar 14 2014, 12:41

How do you handle it? Are you getting better or worse about dealing with stress as you get older? What tips do you have for minimizing your stress levels?

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185
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160
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Kevin Fletcher
  • Denver, CO
160
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185
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Kevin Fletcher
  • Denver, CO
Replied Mar 14 2014, 12:48

@Rick McCray Yoga and Meditation my man. I have found the best thing that helps me is guided hypnosis. If you can manage to not fall asleep and really follow instructions without letting your mind wander.

Put some headphones on and Give it a shot..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WfT7JuwpK2k

User Stats

78
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4
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Walter Thompson
  • Wholesaler
  • Englewood, NJ
4
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78
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Walter Thompson
  • Wholesaler
  • Englewood, NJ
Replied Mar 14 2014, 13:58

@Rick McCray When I am in a stressful mood i'll just go in a quite room and put my headset on and listen to music it just takes you to another place

Also @Kevin Fletcher method is the number 1 stress relief

good luck man

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607
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250
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Annette Hibbler
  • Real Estate Consultant
  • Brighton, MI
250
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607
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Annette Hibbler
  • Real Estate Consultant
  • Brighton, MI
Replied Mar 14 2014, 14:03

Meditation in a quiet place. It takes practice until you learn to quiet your mind but you will get it. I'm also a big fan of LOA, Law of Attraction. Check it out.

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Brie Schmidt
  • Real Estate Broker
  • Chicago, IL
5,000
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6,073
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Brie Schmidt
  • Real Estate Broker
  • Chicago, IL
ModeratorReplied Mar 14 2014, 14:12

Wine and Vodka

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Sharad M.
Pro Member
  • Carlsbad, CA
1,134
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1,991
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Sharad M.
Pro Member
  • Carlsbad, CA
Replied Mar 14 2014, 15:01

@Rick McCray

I have noticed that the better systems I have in my business and the more organized I am, the less stressful I feel.

For me, the only thing more important than Real Estate is my family, so nothing relaxes me more than spending time with family. Something as simple as ordering in and watching a movie.

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Anson Young
  • Flipper/Rehabber
  • Denver, CO
724
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Anson Young
  • Flipper/Rehabber
  • Denver, CO
Replied Mar 14 2014, 15:14

Meditation, solid morning routine, journaling, etc. Having time to just chill out for a bit, go through a 20 minute meditation is 90% of the battle. Dont know how I did without it....

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422
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Rusty Thompson
  • Real Estate Investor
  • Salem, OR
148
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422
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Rusty Thompson
  • Real Estate Investor
  • Salem, OR
Replied Mar 14 2014, 15:14

Mixed drinks....

Just kidding

I agree with Sharad. The more organized I am the less stress I have.

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Chris K.
Pro Member
  • Investor
  • Baltimore, MD
655
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1,265
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Chris K.
Pro Member
  • Investor
  • Baltimore, MD
Replied Mar 14 2014, 15:16
Originally posted by @Kevin Fletcher:
@Rick McCray Yoga and Meditation my man. I have found the best thing that helps me is guided hypnosis. If you can manage to not fall asleep and really follow instructions without letting your mind wander.

Put some headphones on and Give it a shot..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WfT7JuwpK2k

I may have to give this a try thanks

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464
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Kyle Hipp
  • Investor
  • Appleton, WI
464
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1,057
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Kyle Hipp
  • Investor
  • Appleton, WI
Replied Mar 14 2014, 15:32

My life has been pedal to the metal for a couple years now. My stress is prettymuch feeling a project behind but then the next day with the job done I feel I am back ahead of schedule. My biggest stress reliever is a happy wife and son. With my long hours I have gotten used to it and sorta brag about it (I was up 31 hours tues through wednesday night between my day job and a job at one of my properties :)). Working on my properties is very rewarding for me but a bad day at home for my wife with a rambunctious 3 year old boy who is just like daddy and a new puppy can really take a toll and it is hard to see her deal with long days when I can't help much.

A good nights sleep makes things a lot better, like a really good nights sleep, I'm talking 7 uninterrupted hours of sleep!! :)

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Rob K.
  • Investor
  • Southeast, MI
1,706
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Rob K.
  • Investor
  • Southeast, MI
Replied Mar 14 2014, 15:40

I have anxiety and OCD. What helps me is working out and also some apps on my phone. There's a good one called Relax Lite and another called Power of Mind. Both are free and work well.

One of my friends also has major anxiety and turned me on to listening to NPR. We're both very conservative, but found that listening to boring liberals can put you right to sleep. Give it a try.

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J Scott
Pro Member
  • Investor
  • Sarasota, FL
17,164
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J Scott
Pro Member
  • Investor
  • Sarasota, FL
ModeratorReplied Mar 14 2014, 16:53

Take more responsibility and give less blame. This will help you feel more in control of things, and more importantly, will help you strive to actually control things.

Whenever I get upset and want to blame someone for something bad that happened, I think about what I could have done differently to affect a better outcome. Then, I realize I was more in control of the situation than I thought, at which point I can focus on problem solving (which is in my control) as opposed to blame (which isn't).

Though I like some of the other responses as well -- especially music and alcohol... :-)

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Will Barnard
Pro Member
  • Developer
  • Santa Clarita, CA
10,897
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Will Barnard
Pro Member
  • Developer
  • Santa Clarita, CA
ModeratorReplied Mar 14 2014, 17:04

With over $75k a month in mortgage holding costs, my stress level has become higher. Can I limit this stress? Yes, I could do less deals but make less money in the end. I will just deal with it for the short remainder of time I have left, in the end, my stress will be gone for good (for the most part). For now, alcohol helps, baseball helps, and the occasional weekend getaway also helps.

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Rob K.
  • Investor
  • Southeast, MI
1,706
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2,295
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Rob K.
  • Investor
  • Southeast, MI
Replied Mar 14 2014, 17:25

While I enjoy alcohol, I don't think it's a good way to solve your stress. However, it's not as bad as popping pills. I highly recommend trying the apps for you phone to relieve stress.

One of my friend's wife is hooked on Celexa, Ambien, Xanax, diet coke, and vodka. I told him that of those five things, vodka is the one that she should give up last. The other four are much worse.

If you're stressed, try doing ten push ups. It releases endorphins, just like a pill would but without the side effects. If ten is not enough, do 20. Running is also very good.

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365
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180
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Michael Herr
  • Peoria, IL
180
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365
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Michael Herr
  • Peoria, IL
Replied Mar 14 2014, 18:07

My mortgage payments stress me out.

I really want to be debt free more than most investors.

I remind myself that in 10-15 years I'll be debt free and can retire/career change to full time RE.

Until then I remind myself it's going well overall, long term amazing.

Plus playing with my 9 month old daughter, and a few too many beers.

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459
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Rolanda Eldridge
  • Investor/Realtor
  • Hoover, AL
459
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1,309
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Rolanda Eldridge
  • Investor/Realtor
  • Hoover, AL
Replied Mar 14 2014, 18:15

1. Prayer/Meditation

2. Exercise..

3. Massage

4. Occasional glass of wine...actually puts me to sleep...

5. Laughter...great comedy show or movie...

User Stats

143
Posts
91
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Andrew Fingado
  • Real Estate Investor
  • Berkeley, CA
91
Votes |
143
Posts
Andrew Fingado
  • Real Estate Investor
  • Berkeley, CA
Replied Mar 14 2014, 18:37

Getting a solid night's sleep helps limit how stressed you feel. A bad day will feel 10X worse if you are running on little sleep.

I also recommend watching Seinfeld.

Someone else said watching sports helps.

Not if you are an Oakland Raiders fan.

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8
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1
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Lundin Matthews
  • Condo Investor
  • Spring, TX
1
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8
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Lundin Matthews
  • Condo Investor
  • Spring, TX
Replied Mar 14 2014, 18:43

Between my rental houses, oil wells, and day job. I stay stressed to the max all day every day but the best thing for me is to devote one hour to work out every day no matter what.

User Stats

42
Posts
12
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Timothy Trewin
  • Clarksville, TN
12
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42
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Timothy Trewin
  • Clarksville, TN
Replied Mar 14 2014, 18:54

I also find prayer and exercise to be great resources for reducing stress. The thought that I can trust my burdens to a higher power is huge. That and the feeling I get after a good run definitely puts me in a more relaxed state.

User Stats

44
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3
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Sherrice Baines
  • Wholesaler
  • Chicago, IL
3
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44
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Sherrice Baines
  • Wholesaler
  • Chicago, IL
Replied Mar 14 2014, 19:05

@Rick McCray you HAVE to make time for yourself. Working out, meditation or just quiet time for YOU. In our industry it's so easy to become overwhelmed and stressed out. Get plenty of sleep and make time for you, even if it's just complete silence with a good book.

User Stats

201
Posts
140
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Sean Kremer
  • Real Estate Investor
  • Milford, NE
140
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201
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Sean Kremer
  • Real Estate Investor
  • Milford, NE
Replied Mar 14 2014, 19:08

You go from stressed out trying to make money, then you go to stressed out trying not to lose your money..ha ha

User Stats

115
Posts
8
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Filipe Matos
  • Investor
  • toronto, Ontario
8
Votes |
115
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Filipe Matos
  • Investor
  • toronto, Ontario
Replied Mar 14 2014, 20:02

A glass of Port Wine and a cuban cigar works well for me

Filipe

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Scott E.
  • Developer
  • Scottsdale, AZ
2,979
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Scott E.
  • Developer
  • Scottsdale, AZ
Replied Mar 14 2014, 20:20

My top stress relievers:

-Going on a hike. Something about being nature calms me.
-Going on a long bike ride. I always feel refreshed after just 10-15 miles.
-Having a beer in good company. Sometimes I feel like I spend all of my waking hours on business. It's healthy and a nice treat to forget about work for an hour or two here and there.

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User Stats

494
Posts
142
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Stephanie Dupuis
  • Residential Real Estate Broker
  • Bremerton, WA
142
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494
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Stephanie Dupuis
  • Residential Real Estate Broker
  • Bremerton, WA
Replied Mar 14 2014, 23:00

What I do:

1. Sleep - even if you didn't get all your stuff done. Just go to sleep. With solid sleep, you'll get the "to do" list done very fast the next morning, b/c you got your sleep and you're thinking clearly.

2. Limit "to do" list. I look at my to do list and get rid of things I don't really need to do. I pick the top 2-4 things and make sure I get those done. Then, I start on the rest afterwards. (I have a "must do", "should do", "could do" list.) Only 1-2 on the Must Do list. 1-2 things on the should do list. Everything else on the could do list. Prioritize.

3. When I'm done with my stuff for the day, I make myself stop and relax for the rest of the day. We're so conditioned to work an 8 hr. day. Reality is, some days will be 2-4 hours long, some will be 15 hours long. How it is. Rest and play when you can. Enjoy the play time. We need play.

4. Protect your time.