Chronic stress corrodes your brain.
Stress in large doses makes you stupid. Some parts of your brain shrink under the influence of prolonged stress.*
Chronic stress lowers brain power and emotional responsiveness.
5 ways to protect yourself from stress:
#1. Protect yourself from stress by changing your thinking:
Life without stress is tedious.
Chronic stress kills you.
Moderate stress brings you to life.
Healthy stress enhances brain function, memory, and performance.
- Notice your comfort level while fulfilling your responsibilities. Which are completely comfortable? Which cause you stress? How might you use stress for advantage?
- Dance on the edge of comfort and discomfort.
- Don’t resist stress. Use it.
- Challenge yourself and others to test-drive new skills and behaviors.
#2. Protect yourself from stress by finding rest while you feel stress.
Stress wants you to doubt yourself.
5 ways to find rest when you feel stress:
- Remember how stress brings out your best.
- Practice grounded confidence. Lean into tough situations. Stay curious – be a learner, not a knower. (Read Dare to Lead by Brene’ Brown.)
- Embrace inter-dependence. When you have expertise, trust yourself. When you’re a novice, depend on skillful others.
- Seek input. Stress wants you to go it alone. Everyone benefits from input – especially those who think they don’t need it.
- Focus on what you want. Stress wants you to focus on what you don’t want.
#3. Protect yourself from stress by taking action.
Stop thinking about things you can’t do. Go do something.
Procrastination elevates stress.
Ruminating fuels stress. Defeat blackhole-thinking by making something better.
#4. Protect yourself from stress by associating with confident people.
Stress is contagious. One source of stress is hanging with stressed out people.
#5. Protect yourself from stress by asking three questions:
- How can I grow through stress?
- What am I learning?
- What’s the worst that could happen?
What are the worst leadership stressors?
How might you protect yourself from stress?
*Re-Entry Stress Is Contagious. Here’s How to Protect Yourself.
Still curious:
A Realistic Approach to Stress Management that doesn’t cause more Stress