People really need to relax more. Whether that means taking a vacation or just taking a deep breath every now and then, we should be giving our minds and bodies more peace. This day and age is plagued by so much unnecessary drama and anger that it’s sickening to watch, not to mention detrimental to our overall well-being.

First off, we should stop saying “you,” as in, “why did you do this?” or “well, that’s what YOU wanted, isn’t it?” No word is abused more in the English language than “you.” The accusatory tone of “you” naturally gets on people’s nerves while doing absolutely nothing to resolve any problem one is having. Yet we insist on using it incessantly. Here’s what is much more helpful to me: talk about yourself instead. “I just don’t feel comfortable doing this,” or “Is there any way I can help?” It’s a subtle change, but makes a world of difference by making yourself vulnerable, and people are more reluctant to criticize those who are vulnerable. Don’t put the people in your life on the defensive, try to make them come to your defense instead.

If we can somehow manage to reduce the usage of “you” on a large scale, we’ve probably solved 90 percent of our stress problems. However, people have a tendency to overreact to momentary crises or have very limited foresight, and this is a major source of stress as well. A bad breakup can feel like it will never go away, and a shift downward in the stock market can cause panic when there was nothing but optimism before. Try this: the next time you have an experience similar to the ones mentioned above, take note of it and revisit it one year from when it occurred. Is it still as bad and hopeless as you thought it was then? You’ll be amazed at how most of those incidents will either be forgotten entirely or greatly diminished in importance once a little time passes by.

Do I dare venture into politics? I will say one thing that can be applied to just about everyone who has some sort of political opinion: it’s very easy for discussions involving politics and religion to get heated and for friends to become sworn enemies, so tread lightly. Watch your tone and be considerate. Remember that there are always two sides to any issue and that everyone is entitled to their own opinion. It really is a shame that so many people still do not understand these basic ideas, yet the election of this year clearly proved that they do not.

Lastly, be careful how you disagree with someone. I’ve seen people fight over the stupidest things imaginable, things which I had no idea could cause such a large amount of division, all because someone said an off-the-cuff remark (probably with a “you”) and the other person perceived it the wrong way. If I were in charge of making the rules, I would decree immediately that so long as there exist global problems on the scale of famine, refugee crises, hunger and disease that no one is allowed to start inane arguments that solve nothing and only cause hatred to spread. Is that truly realistic? Of course not, but it also doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t try. Go forth and spread kindness so that others will do the same.