Everyone is watching the unfortunate breakdown of Jon and Kate Gosselin’s marriage. It is now the saga of Jon and Kate divorce. It is a private tragedy playing out in public. And everyone is asking what could have prevented this. Well, first and foremost, everyone should probably be looking at the characters of the people involved. And maybe STRESS JUDO could have helped.
Having your every move, especially how you raise your kids, seems to be the definition of stress, doesn’t it? And in such a high-pressure situation, simplistic stress reduction techniques like meditation or taking a break is clearly inadequate. But the signs of stress were obvious to anyone who watched the show. So what components of the STRESS JUDO stress management system could have helped them?
The fourth component of STRESS JUDO is “self-examination.” It is a key component of handling stress to periodically examine yourself to see how you are reacting to the stress. Are you handling it in a positive manner? By engaging in self examination, you can review whether you are handling the stress, or whether it is overwhelming you. Or, in the case of Jon and Kate, whether it is changing you into someone you don’t want to be.
The sixth component of STRESS JUDO is spiritual growth. This does not mean to pick a particular religion or philosophy. It means to define your values and to handle the stress in line with your values and morals. It means to strengthen your will and self discipline, to be able to withstand temptations to deviate from what you believe to be right and moral.
The seventh component of STRESS JUDO is coaching. You should have a coach or role model for how you handle stress. At a certain level, this requires you to humble yourself to be able to learn from someone else. This component also talks about coaching yourself. Again, to engage in self examination.
The above components are only 3 of the 12 components of STRESS JUDO. It seems to me these are the 3 most applicable to the Jon and Kate situation, to be able to have helped them. Had either one of them really self-examined, he or she might have seen what the show was doing to him or her and to their family. Had either one of them examined his or her own values and philosophy, they would have seen how far the show and the pseudo-fame was pulling them from their core values. Finally, had either of them used a coach – or even decided to be his or her own coach – they would have seen that they weren’t handling being parents and celebrities very well.
Could STRESS JUDO have saved this marriage? The answer of course is purely speculative. But STRERSS JUDO has all the components to have given them the best shot at surviving the stress of the show and the fans and the pressures of sudden fame and fortune. Maybe it can help your situation too.
Get your FREE reports on the 12 components of a complete stress management system. There is also a report on how stress damages your performance.
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