Ways To Manage Stress Creatively

    Stress is a huge problem for us all. Here's what I've learned and applied to manage stress using my creativity.

    1）{#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    Putting my creativity and my work first, I often neglected to eat, exercise, even stand up from my desk. I now realize that how I feel physically (and mentally) is more important than the work I create. Taking care of myself includes all natural remedies(疗法). I'm learning how to say no to social pressures, in favor of my own well-being.

    2）Don't worry about what other people think of you.

    This is easier said than done, but I promise it does come with age.{#blank#}2{#/blank#}A lot of people do offer unsolicited(自发的) advice. It is human nature to want to help other people. But if that advice is coming from a place of control or judgment, RUN in the opposite direction.

    3）Don't compare.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#}Most people are not as happy as they describe themselves to be. The best advice I ever heard was this：Don't compare your inside to other people's outside. Be open to new experiences, be kind to yourself and accepting of the journey which is life. Being present means not thinking into the future, or harping(唠叨) on the past. The coolest thing about being present is that CREATIVITY LIVES IN THE MOMENT{#blank#}4{#/blank#}

    4）Your intentions matter.

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#}What was your intention? I remind myself to enjoy the process of my creative fun stuff, it's for me. If others like it, great, but it's the enjoyment of my creative intention, in the moment, that I treasure.

A. Stop judging

B. Each moment is UNIQUE

C. We have to work in order to live

D. Take care of yourself--Mind AND Body

E. Stress is often caused by comparison to others

F. It's important to remember why you started doing something

G. No one cares about what you're doing unless what you're doing affects them

    Plants are very important living things. Life could not go if there were no plants. This is because plants can make food from air, water and sunlight.{#blank#}1{#/blank#}. Animals get their food by eating plants and other animals.    So animals and man need plants in order to live.{#blank#}2{#/blank#}.

    If you look carefully at the plants around you, you will find that there are two kinds of plants: flowering plants and non-flowering plants.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#}. The seeds are protected by the fruits. Some fruits have one seed, some have two, three or four, and some have many seeds.{#blank#}4{#/blank#}. An example of a fruit without seeds is the banana fruit.

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#}. They grow from spores（孢子）. Spores are very small. Some spores are so small and light that they can float in the air. We may say that spores are quite the same as the seeds, when these spores fall on wet and shady places, they usually grow into new plants.

A. There are about half a million kinds of plants in the world

B. Animals and man cannot make food from air, water and sunlight

C. But a few fruits have no seeds at all

D. Not all the plants grow from the seeds

E. This is why we find that there are so many plants around us

F. Flowering plants can make seeds

G. Most non-flowering plants don't grow from seeds

    You often find somebody who works around you complaining all the time, don't you? {#blank#}1{#/blank#}. About 70% of Americans say being around nonstop complainers sometimes has a bad influence on them. Luckily, here are 4 tips to help form positive patterns.

    Self-awareness

    When a negative thought pops into your mind, immediately correct it. Instead of telling yourself “That's a nice shirt, but I can't afford it,” change the message to “That will look great with my black pants when I can afford it.”{#blank#}2{#/blank#}.

    Of course, everyone complains sometimes. But the less frequently you complain, the better you will feel.

    Distance yourself

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#}. Excuse yourself and go somewhere quiet, somewhere outdoors in the fresh air. Think of something pleasant before returning. You have to take this seriously because negative people can and will pull you into the quicksand (难以摆脱的困境).

    Don't try to change complainers

    If you find yourself trapped in a group of complainers in a meeting or at a social event, simply choose silence. Let their words bounce off you while you think of something else. Attempting to stop the complaining can make you a target.{#blank#}4{#/blank#}. If someone says, “I hate Mondays; weekends are too short,” try to think, “I'm glad I rested over the weekend, so I'm ready to make some improvement on that big project.”

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#}

    When someone is shouting at you angrily, throw the responsibility back at them by asking, “So what do you intend to do about it?” In most cases, complainers don't really want a solution. They just want to speak them out. If you make them aware that they themselves have to find the solutions, they will leave you alone and find someone else to complain to. If so, you will be happy.

A. Find solutions

B. Change the responsibility

C. You have got a lot of company

D. By doing this, it will lead to positive behavior

E. But you can redirect the discussion in your own mind

F. Whenever possible, escape from negative conversations

G. You will never know what they are going to talk about

（A student meets his English teacher at the bus station when the summer holiday begins）

S: Hello, Miss Li. How are you?

T: Oh, fine, thank you.{#blank#}1{#/blank#}And how are you and your parents?

S: We're all very well, too. Thanks.

T: {#blank#}2{#/blank#}

S: My parents and I are going to Shanghai to see my grandparents. And you?

T: I'm going to Beijing. All the teachers are going there.

S:{#blank#}3{#/blank#}

T: For a week.

S: We're coming back in a week, too.{#blank#}4{#/blank#}

T: Thank you. Have a good trip! There goes the bus.{#blank#}5{#/blank#}Goodbye.

S: Bye.

    Every minute, every single day, about a truckload of plastic enters our oceans. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} And to date, only 9％of that has been recycled.

    We buy a bottle of water, drink it for a few minutes, and toss its permanent packaging "away". We eat potato chips, finish them, then throw their permanent packaging "away". We buy produce, take it out of the unnecessary plastic wrap, then throw its permanent packaging "away".

    The cycle is endless, and it happens countless times every single day. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} As far as we try to toss a piece of plastic—whether it's into a recycling bin or not——it does not disappear. Chances are, it ends up polluting our communities, oceans or waterways in some form.

    For years, we've been told the problem of plastic packaging can be solved through batter individual action. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} But the truth is that we cannot recycle our way out of this mess.

    Recycling alone will never stop the flow of plastics into our oceans；we have to get to the source of the problem and slow down the production of all this plastic waste. Think about it: if your home was flooding because you had left the tap on, your first step wouldn't be to start mopping. You'd first cut the flooding off at its source—the tap. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}

    We need corporations—those like Coca-Cola, Unilever, Starbucks and Neatlé that continue to produce throwaway plastic bottles—to step up and take their responsibility for the mess they've created. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} We will continue to do our part, but it's time for the world's largest corporations to do theirs.

A. This is their problem to deal with.

B. Plastic pollution is becoming very serious.

C. But here is the problem—there is no "away".

D. In many ways, our plastic problem is no different.

E. We think that if we simply recycle we're doing our part.

F. It's impossible for us to get rid of plastic pollution completely.

G. Since the 1950s, some 8. 3bn tons of plastic have been produced worldwide.

    Are you truly happy? Do you ever know what it means to be happy and what it takes to achieve happiness?

    {#blank#}1{#/blank#}. The following are a few tips that I follow to create happiness in my life.

    ※ Make a plan for attaining goals that you believe will make you happy. Your moods will very likely increase if you are going after something you value.

    ※Surround yourself with happy people. It is easy to begin to think negatively when you are surrounded by people who think that way. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}.

    ※When something goes wrong, try to figure out a solution instead of being absorbed in self pity. Truly happy people don't allow setbacks to affect their mood because they know that with a little thought they can turn the circumstances back to their favor.

    ※{#blank#}3{#/blank#}. These few minutes will give you the opportunity to focus on the positive things in your life and will lead you to continuous happiness.

    ※{#blank#}4{#/blank#}. Whether you treat yourself to lunch, take a long, relaxing bath or simply spend a few extra minutes on your appearance, you will be subconsciously (下意识地) putting yourself in a better mood.

    ※Finding the humor in situations can also lead to happiness. Find a way to make light of a situation that would otherwise make you happy.

    ※Keeping healthy is another way to achieve happiness. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}