Don’t stress. Dance.

April is national stress awareness month. Sounds gross. Feels worse.  Stress is a real thing, unfortunately.

My assistant found this statistic:

At least 1/3 of Canadians feel that they are constantly under stress because they are trying to accomplish more than what they can effectively handle and not taking the time to decompress often enough.

That’s a mouthful. It gives me a headache just reading it.

So, how can we help?

No, I am not coming over with a giant glass of wine. I am not babysitting your kids or making breakfast. But here’s some really good advice, and a few things we can do to ease your troubled mind.

You aren’t a contractor or a designer. So plotting to do your own renovation may be a little overwhelming.  I can most definitely say, do a little Google-search, and find the perfect team to help you with whatever you plan to do at home.

If you’ve read my past blogs, I have discussed at length, the things you should look for in a good team.  But what are some essential things a designer can do to guide you into a less stressful life?

Here’s a list:

1.We can create a coffee station when we remodel your kitchen. No, really. It’s very important.

Candles: West Elm

3.  And when you are done your bath, we can outfit an awesome sofa for you, so you can put your    feet up and chill all night long.

This is my favorite sofa at the moment. The seats are gel filled. It’s so comfortable!

 

Now on a serious note:

I have spoken to a few people about stress lately. Coffee, baths and comfy sofas are terrific, but they are truly only momentarily helpful.

In our world, we help reduce stress by caring, a lot, about our clients. You can read all my blogs and you will know exactly what I mean. Aside from great design and really top notch quality work, our most important goal is to keep our clients stress-free. Just as you do at whatever job you have. We all try to be the best. Here, at Monaco Interiors, we also try to be the kindest. Because when you have no kitchen or bathroom, or your basement is being built, or your furniture is a couple of milk crates until the order arrives, you are scared and grumpy. And we are the hug. It’s our job to make the experience okay for you.

But everyone reading this today isn’t about to start a renovation, or redecorate a space. Some of you just love my writing (wink wink).

A little prayer

For us all, there one piece of advice that I have always found priceless. It’s been said with vulgarity:

If you can’t change it then **** it.

                – courtesy of my friend Phil.

It’s been said in prayer:

God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
Courage to change the things I can,
And wisdom to know the difference.

                 -Karl Paul Reinhold Niebuhr

I say it a little differently:

Every challenge has a solution. Every solution only comes when you put your emotions aside, and with clarity, look at the challenge.

It’s a hard world out there. It’s filled with perfect parenting, overworking, financial obligations, puppies that peed on your new rug, flu shots, keeping up with the Joneses and so much more.  But if we all just took a few minutes a day to sit. Be bored. Stare out the window. Think in peace. Prioritize. Then maybe we’d realize that most of the stuff that fills our nerves with stress doesn’t really matter anyway.

And if that doesn’t work, make a huge coffee, hop in your awesome tub and go snore on your super cozy sofa. We’ll help you get there.

If all else fails. Just dance.

Have a terrific day!
XR