As a freelance writer, you probably experience work-related stress and strain everyday. Sometimes you have too many projects (or not enough), clients don’t like your work or love it but refuse to pay the balance due, etc. Unfortunately, stress is part of being a freelancer and as long as you continue freelancing, you’ll experience some stress. But, I have good news for you. There are numerous techniques you can use in dealing with everyday stress. Techniques that will help you get and stay in control.

1. Get a grip and better balance your life. If you’re constantly in a state of unbalance and can’t effectively deal with the demands of work and family, you need to take control. If you don’t, you’ll experience the effects of stress and will be very unhappy indeed. By learning to balance your family’s demands with your clients, you’ll experience less stress and frustration.
2. Be more positive. Don’t concentrate on the negatives. Instead, focus on the positives. For instance, if a client doesn’t like your work, don’t see it as a failure. Figure out what you can do to improve it. If you do this, you’ll be using failure as feedback!
3. Identify everyday stressors and how you react to them. For instance, do your muscles become tense or do you get headaches when you feel stressed? Do you feel nauseous or experience stomach pains? Do you feel nervous or irritable when you’re under pressure? Or, does your heart race and your palms get sweaty? Whenever you notice these stressor reactions, take note of them immediately.
4. Plan to eliminate stress and then do it. For instance, some people learn biofeedback which is a relaxation method that teaches you to control your responses to stress. With biofeedback techniques, your brain learns how to control your heart rate, blood pressure, muscle tension, etc. The result will be less stress.
5. Eliminate stressors now. If you have to drop a particular project because it stresses you too much then do it. Although you might initially miss the income from this project, you’ll soon find better and higher paying projects.
6. Make accommodations. Try to shorten the amount of time you are exposed to the stress. For instance, if you have a client that is constantly stressing you out then don’t schedule a two hour meeting with him. Instead, keep the meeting to 30 minutes or less so that you avoid the situation as much as possible.
7. Take frequent breaks. Although it is always better to take a brief walk throughout the day, you may find that isn’t possible. If so, take some time away from your desk to stretch. Simply relax the muscles in your jaw, neck and shoulders which will help you alleviate stress.
8. Eat healthy foods. Certain foods tend to alleviate stress. For instance, almonds, blueberries, cottage cheese, fish, broccoli, whole-grain rice are thought to have stress-relieving properties.
9. Meditate. You can do this by breathing deep into your abdomen and slowly letting your breath out. Not only will this clear your mind but it will also increase oxygenate your blood too.
10. Enjoy life. Take time out of your day to enjoy yourself single day. Do the things that make you happy. After all, life is precious and you must enjoy it!

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4. Tips I’ve learned from Successful Bloggers