Nov 24, 2023
Summary
It’s common to experience stress at work and then
struggle to perform at our best. We might even react in ways we
regret later. This week we explore how to maintain composure under
pressure.
Transcript
Hello and welcome to episode 211 of the Leadership
Today podcast where each week we share practical tips to improve
your leadership. This week we explore how to maintain composure
under pressure.
It’s common to experience stress at work and then
struggle to perform at our best. We might even react in ways we
regret later. Perhaps it’s a comment from a colleague that annoys
us, or our computer crashing and losing what we’ve been working on
for hours. We then say or do something that’s not us at our best,
or we might even feel unable to say or do what we’d like in that
moment. But there are practical things we can do, both in the
moment and as part of our daily routines, that can significantly
improve the way we handle pressure.
Here are four things you can do beforehand:
- Get plenty of sleep. Find a sleep routine that
works for you and stick with it. Getting to bed around the same
time and ensuring you have around 8 hours a night boosts your
energy levels and resilience.
- Start your day with exercise. This burns off stress
hormones and allows you to begin your day with greater resilience
to stressful situations that might arise. Find exercise that works
for you. For example, if you commute, you might build a slightly
longer walk into your routine. Or if you’re working from home, set
an alarm to prompt you to take a walk.
- Structure recovery time into your day. This might
include taking breaks away from your work, going for a quick walk
during the day, or even catching up with a colleague for a coffee
away from the office. We are not great at sustained work and
attention beyond 60 to 90 minutes, so short breaks across the day
will help you to recover and reset. Even 5 minute breaks to step
away from one task and mentally prepare for the next one make a
huge difference.
- Deal with any relational difficulties. Poor working
relationships can place a lot of strain on our work day and lead us
to become frustrated. We may then say or do things that don’t
reflect us at our best. We don’t have to be best friends with
everyone at work, but having open conversations with others about
how you can best work together will help reduce stress and
annoyance.
And now five things you can do In the moment:
- Notice your emotional state. Just as we have a
stream of conscious thoughts during the day, so we also have a
steady stream of emotions. Tune into your body and emotional state.
If you sense yourself moving up the emotional curve, do something
about it before you reach the top.
- Name it to tame it. Naming the emotion we are
feeling helps us to manage it more effectively. Research even shows
that putting a label on an emotion reduces the intensity of that
emotion almost immediately. So if you feel angry, note that
emotion.
- Focus on your breathing. Simple techniques such as
box breathing can rapidly calm our emotional state. Think of it
like a box - breath in deeply for four seconds, hold for four
seconds, exhale fully for four seconds, then hold for four
seconds.
- Have an escape plan. If you are feeling close to
losing control of your emotional state, have a plan for how you
might exit the situation.
- Say sorry. If you do go over the edge and say or do
something you regret, apologise to those involved. This will help
others to understand that you weren’t at your best and that you
intend to do better next time. An honest apology goes a long way to
maintaining and building effective relationships.
These are just some practical things you can do
beforehand and in the moment to help us maintain our composure and
respond well when under pressure. If you found this helpful you can
check out our Harnessing Your Emotions five day challenge for more
tips -
https://leadershiptoday.vhx.tv/challenge-harnessing-your-emotions
. Have a great week.
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