In today's world, many people live under almost constant pressure. It can be brought by fierce competition in their daily lives: students struggle to survive exams; employees fight to keep their "tenuous" hold on jobs, and all walks of life overflow with challenges and competition. People have to stay on their toes for days on end. Working in investment trades such as finance, securities and real estate are particularly stressful, as those markets are invariably volatile and unpredictable. Every one working in those industries feels as if they are on an endless "rollercoaster" ride that keeps them in heart-stopping fear.

Faced with pressure, some people are determined to fight their way to victory, frequently telling themselves "no pressure, no drive". Words like these can boost one's confidence in striving for success, but they come with "side effects" as well - while fighting to excel one runs the risk of overtaxing themselves physically.

Every once in a while, someone who has succeeded in his career finds himself in the grip of fatal illness such as cancer, though he was not a heavy drinker or chain smoker. We have heard such confounding and sad stories all too often, but cannot do anything except try to convince ourselves that "it's god's will." As a matter of fact, however, medical experts have proved constant stress can irreparably harm one's health and warned super busy people with enormous responsibilities of the danger their overtaxing lifestyle poses to their health.

Life is a wonderful thing, and the immune system has the uncanny ability to fend off many diseases. Psychological stress, however, has been proven to affect one's immune system negatively. If one frequently feels intense, anxious, nervous, conflicted or generally in a bad mood, it more often than not mess up their endocrine system, which in turn weakens their immune system. When the immune system is down there is little defense against diseases. Therefore, maintaining sound psychological health is imperative to a good life.

There is an old Chinese saying that goes something like this: The more you take heart in beating the odds the faster it will help cure the disease. As a busy urbanite, one can always find ways to relieve stress from all the pressure that one's life style brings. For instance, one can spend different amounts of time on matters according to their importance and/or urgency so as to improve the efficiency of daily chores. Remember: Stay calm as best you can. Never bite more than you can chew when faced with a critical decision - making rational decisions will help prevent the stress caused by undesirable consequences of bad choices. Always keep a clear mind and a healthy amount of optimism; never feel complacent when things go smoothly or lose heart as soon as the going gets tough. Deal with whatever life throws at you with an open mind, use some smarts and humor whenever necessary. If it ever gets too hard for you to handle on your own, ask for help from loved ones and close friends rather than numbing yourself with alcohol, drugs, gambling or extramarital affairs. Build a loving and harmonious environment around you with a sweet family and true friends who will be there for you when you need them; exercise on a daily basis, follow a healthy diet, take physical checkups regularly and seek medical attention before any sickness turns serious. Maintaining good mental and physical health is not that hard if you really put your mind to it.

There is nothing more satisfying than leading a healthy and happy life. No matter what your social status is, everybody has their own worries and troubles to deal with. Once you know how to relieve stress and relax yourself emotionally, you are able to affect those around you positively in addition to maintaining your own mental and physical well-being. Want a healthy, happy life? It's yours if you take the right steps.

The author is chairman of the Hip Shing Hong Group of Companies and managing director of the Kam Wah Investment Company Limited.

(HK Edition 08/25/2010 page2)