Staying calm: Four tips for dealing with pre-election jitters.

Every Wednesday is Tip Day.
This Wednesday: 4 tips for dealing with pre-election jitters.

The presidential election has everyone nervous. No one is confident about the outcome, and it could potentially be a very, very long night next Tuesday. Emotions are running high.

So how can you deal with pre-election jitters?

1. Don’t stay plugged in every minute. With all the news and opinion outlets out there, you can make yourself crazy by trying to keep up. That’s fine if you have nothing else to do, but if you fall behind at work or neglect the people in your life, you’re going to see some unhappy consequences. Also, you might find your mood jerked up and down as you follow the good and bad news. Remind yourself that unless you’re actually employed by a campaign, you don’t have to process every scrap of information. Set aside certain times during the day to check in, and don’t let it take over your life. At the same time, when you do engage in the political conversation…

2. Keep the level of your conversation high. One of the most fascinating insights from my happiness-project research is that although we often think we act because of the way we feel, we often feel because of the way we act. So if you’re spewing vitriol anonymously on the internet, if you’re screaming at the TV, if you’re insulting your relatives for their political views, that ugly behavior is going to blow back on you, and make you feel more mean and angry. If you speak respectfully, you’ll feel more respect for yourself, and you’ll contribute to a more thoughtful level of political discourse. What’s more…

3. Do more than pontificate. You may feel like you’re participating very actively by doing a lot of reading and a lot of talking. Fact is, although every citizen has a duty to be well-informed, there’s a lot more to civic participation than just talking about it. You can volunteer to help a campaign, or contribute, or be a poll watcher, or be a poll volunteer. Especially if you’re feeling frustrated, taking an active role will give you a reassuring sense of having done your best to help. And, zoikes, at the very least…

4. VOTE! In 2004, I was absolutely flabbergasted when a good friend, a political nut, told me casually that he didn’t vote, because it wasn’t worth his time to deal with going to the polls. “My vote doesn’t make a difference in New York,” he explained. This is a guy who is consumed with politics. I was so shocked, I couldn’t think of a thing to say – and that doesn’t happen to me very often. Call me sentimental, but I think if you can vote, you should! I love to vote.

Voting will make you happier, too. The subject of self-esteem has generated a fair amount of controversy, but one thing seems clear: you don’t get healthy self-esteem from constantly telling yourself how great you are, or even from other people telling you how great you are. You get healthy self-esteem from behaving in ways that you find estimable. In other words, the best way to feel better about yourself is to do something worthy of your own respect. By making the effort to do something worthwhile, like voting, even if it’s inconvenient, you will raise yourself in your own estimation.

How about you? Have you found any good strategies for staying calm as we enter the last week before the election?

*
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Comments

[Stephen Tiano]

Went thru the exact same thing with a friend at my day job yesterday. We're talking & talking politics & the election. Then she drops on me how she's not voting as her vote doesn't matter (here in the State of NY). Weirded me out to hear it.

[Eric]

Thanks for a great post. All very important ways to act and behave during the election cycle.

I talk with people all the time that complain about how unhappy they are each and every day. Then I find out they are news junkies. They watch everything over and over. The news focuses on negatives almost to the exclusion of positives. This gives us a false sense of reality. Life is so much better than what the news paints for us....

[Mark W.]

I also live in the state of NY and can relate to the thoughts of people who don't believe their vote will really matter. I vote for a number of reasons regardless of media opinion or poll numbers including 1) fellow Americans have sacrificed their lives and time to make it possible for me to cast my ballot and 2) I just enjoy seeing fellow members of the community and the poll workers at the polls. I actually look forward to going to the polls and don't view it as some kind of onerous task by any stretch.
Go vote!!!

[Heather Bestel]

I too was amazed by how few people voted in our last election here in the UK.
I feel passionately that we must use our vote, especially as I am a woman. It's not just to utilise my right, but as a way of paying dues to those who came before to fight for my right. Some of whom lost their lives for their beliefs.
Good luck and I'll be thinking of you all next week.
Heather

[adora]

A study (I read on SciAm mag) showed that people who vote are happy because it gives them sense of control.

It works if you believe that your vote really is important.

[Yield to Pedestrian]

Ironically, the way I feel calm about the outcome is to spend time thinking/empathizing about why people would vote for the candidate I did not vote for (I voted early). By understanding someone else's perspective (about half the country's perspective!), it helps me see the election more dispassionately and be more calm about it!

[beth_nc]

Even today, in parts of the world, people don't have the rights we have.

Even if it seems that a few votes can't influence the presidential election, what about local elections? Next week, I'll vote for US president -- and also on programs specific to my county.

Gretchen - thanks for writing about the election without taking political sides.

[Patrick]

I jumped to a linked post, "Do You Love To Vote?"
http://www.happiness-project.com/happiness_project/2006/11/do_you_love_to_.html

"I love the ritual aspect—the whole country going through an experience together. It’s like the Super Bowl."

Very funny. Had to share again in this election year :P

[Lina]

I have realized that for me it is very hard to stick to my point of view when people around start actively discussing the topic (especially if they do so in aggressive manner) - I just feel distracted and no more know who to believe and what to think. Sometimes I prefer to be given only the amount of information to make my opinion - no less, but no more as well...

[Dudley Bacon]

Wow Gretchen, you blew me away when you said "do something worthy of your own respect". I don't know if you put that in there quite deliberately or it naturally sprang from your wealth of words and wisdom, but I'm hanging my hat on that beautiful bit of advice. I even e-mailed it to me, just so I'd be sure to remember what you said.

[therapydoc]

Love that second point, dear. Very nice.

[robinv]

I am late at commenting, but I really wanted to thank you for this post. I too am suffering from election anxiety. I realized I had to stop the non stop news reports. It was making me crazy. thanks for bringing it home to me.

and I voted early. Always, ALWAYS Vote! It does matter!!