"Don't sweat the smallstuff"..what does the phrase truly mean?

Question

I know what the phrase means..well, at least, i think i know. How do you measure it? For example, if I lost an important book..it means the world to me..and people say, "don't sweat the small stuff" to me..They don't understand how important..the item is to me..To them, it's a small stuff, but to me, it's not.

I guess..my question is..How do you know if a situation/thing is the small stuff?

I hope I am making some sense..

Answer 1

I'd say it means don't act like you're world is about to fall apart, when all you have to do is change your attitude. Remember, there is always someone else in a much worse predicament.

Answer 2

A lot of things seem important at the time, but as time goes by, most of it you realize isn't such a big deal after all. I wouldn't say that _everything_ is small stuff; getting married, having kids, losing a loved one are obviously important things in our lives. I guess you just need to build some experience and be able to look at something's effect on you in the future.

You have an emotional attachment to that book, so losing it was a loss to you. That's understandable. I have a couple collections of books myself that I would really, really hate to lose. If I did, I would miss them, but since they're not things I use everyday, I would not have to make any changes to my life to adjust to their loss. There would just be the emotional content, the loss of something I valued, but that would decrease somewhat in time, even though it may really hurt at first.

Losing a loved one like a family member or favorite pet _would_ mean a change in your life, as you would no longer have that person's company or presence in your life. That's in addition to the actual feelings of loss. So I would count that as a big deal.

I hope _I'm_ making some sense here. :)

Answer 3

"Don't sweat the small stuff," means that obsessing about trivia sidetracks you from your goals. The book may have had a great deal of sentimental value, but it can be replaced.

Keep the things you love in your heart, not in objects that can be lost.

On the Journey of Life, travel light, or your baggage will slow you down. Reaching your goals while remaining true to yourself and loving fully those you love are the important things. Everything else is Small Stuff.

Answer 4

Is the thing over which you're expending so much energy essential? Can you live without the "important book" that you lost? Could it be replaced? It is probably true that every problem has a solution. We often don't know what it is at the time we're fretting. But allow reason and God's Spirit to guide you. Things will then come into perspective.

Answer 5

The Bible has had it right for millenniums. “A live dog is better off than a dead lion. For the living are conscious that they will die; but as for the dead, they are conscious of nothing at all, neither do they anymore have wages, because the remembrance of them has been forgotten.” (Ecclesiastes 9:4, 5) Does that mean there is absolutely no hope for the dead? Jesus Christ preach about resurrection to life on a restored paradise earth. His Jewish follower Martha, whose brother, Lazarus, had just died, believed in the resurrection, for she said of Lazarus: “I know he will rise in the resurrection on the last day.” (John 11:24) To this, Jesus answered: “I am the resurrection and the life. He that exercises faith in me, even though he dies, will come to life; and everyone that is living and exercises faith in me will never die at all. Do you believe this?” (John 11:25, 26) Earlier, he had said: “Do not marvel at this, because the hour is coming in which all those in the memorial tombs will hear his voice and come out, those who did good things to a resurrection of life, those who practiced vile things to a resurrection of judgment.” John 5:28, 29; Luke 23:43. As you can see there will be a resurrection of both the righteous. and the unrighteous. Please do further research in you Bible to get a better understanding.

Answer 6

Only deal with issues that are important, do not worry about thing that you are unable to fix yourself. Only worry and try to resolve the issues in your life that you have the power to influence for the better.

Answer 7

When someone deals with a lot of dilemmas
they might "choosing their battles" and leave the smaller ones aside or dismissed

Answer 8

It means don't waste your time worrying about unimportant matters. If you worry about such things, you need to change your point of view.

Answer 9

It's all a matter of perception so do not worry about anything.