According to the “Attitudes in the American Workplace IV” Gallup Poll, 80 percent of U.S. workers feel stress on the job, and about half say they need help coping with it. How many times have you failed to draw lines, set limits, speak up or say “no” to people and demands in your life thus causing you stress? This can lead to procrastination, suffering in silence or forgetfulness as you say “no” in unconscious or dishonest ways. If you do not assert yourself, you can stockpile anger and find yourself mentally and physically uptight. If you are not assertive enough, then you must attend assertiveness training to learn how to relieve your stress. You may have learned from studying assertiveness, the three main ways of behaviors are assertive, aggressive and passive. Passive behavior means giving up your rights by not expressing your honest feelings, thoughts and beliefs. Aggressive behavior means to stand up for your personal rights in an honest way and express your thoughts and feelings, which do not violate the rights of others. Assertive behavior means standing up for your personal rights and expressing your thoughts, feelings, and beliefs in direct, honest, and helpful ways which do not violate the rights of others. Of the three behavioral patterns, the assertive pattern is the most popular when managing stress. Understanding these behavioral patterns and knowing when to use them can be very helpful, when coping with work-related stress. Being able to use the right behavior pattern, at the right time, on a daily basis is very difficult. However, you must continue to work on strengthening this area of communication. There are several techniques that you can use to cope with work-related stress. This includes different forms of meditation and different behavior patterns for being assertive, aggressive and passive. In life many situations will occur which you cannot change. These events will become less stressful once you realize that you have no control over them. Are you interested in taking my online courses? To the new and experienced entrepreneurs, getting help with your small business is very crucial to your success. Getting the right help will cause you to avoid costly mistakes, and it can also help you to save a lot of time, money and energy. You will need to get the right help to form the legal structure of the business, financial, management, procurement/certification, marketing, pricing products, preparing a business plan, and more. If you are a business owner who is wondering if you can take your business to new heights, contact Dr. Waters at tina.waters@waienterprises.com