EXECUTIVE STRESS

Stress is one of the main plagues of modern times. Of course, there is ‘good’ stress and ‘bad’ stress. Some stress can help improve our mental and physical performance and some can enchain you. The ‘bad’ stress could be when you are facing permanent pressure (for a long period of time) from various stakeholders e.g. shareholders, employees and the firm’s largest customers. The danger of this could be either burn out at an earlier stage or suddenly dropping dead of a heart attack before hitting fifty.

What is happening?

• We live and operate in a VUCA world (volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous) which lessen their internal and external sense of control
• Due to technology advancement and data overflow leaders have more emails in their inbox than they can go through on a daily basis
• They may work long hours and attend functions and dinners outside working hours
• Their days are jammed with back-to-back meetings, sales targets and profitability presentations.
• Today business environment is obsessively goal oriented with moving targets, which make people tend to forget about celebrating their successes.

‘But that is all part of being in a leadership role’ – you could say.

Can you recognise any of the following?

• Constantly worrying or obsessing about work.
• Feel overwhelmed and unable to cope.
• Always feeling rushed.
• Feeling stuck in one place.
• Bringing the stress of work home to your friends and family.
• Difficulty falling or staying asleep.
• Constantly feeling angry/frustrated at yourself or at others.
• Find it difficult making quick and timely decisions because of how it will impact on your business.
• Thinking that you are the only one feeling this way within the leadership team, therefore, you just need to try harder and conceal it.
• Constantly on your phone, tablet or laptop – even while driving or eating – or on your days off.
• Have headaches, back pain, aching joints and abdominal tightness.
• Drinking more alcohol, smoking more cigarettes, taking more recreational / prescription drugs, gambling more to make you “feel better”.

So why is it you feel pressured? 

According to studies stress is not caused by the higher degree of responsibility and pressure usually associated with rank. It is not the demands of the job that cause the most stress, but the degree of control people feel they have throughout their day. Simply said: less control, more stress.

If you are trying furiously to control situations in order to feel less stressed you are actually not really in control at all.  Having a strong internal sense of power and control is essential to managing your thoughts, feelings and emotions well, and keeping your stress and anxiety levels well under control.

How can you become more resilience, feel more controlled and energized and as a result less stressed?

There is an excellent mindfulness exercise you could do regularly or whenever you feel the need:

1. Let go – it is about not holding tightly to
   1. anything, that may get in the way
   2. anything, that is disturbing you
   3. anything that keeps you in the past or in the foxhole
2. Let in – it is about creating space for
   1. new things
   2. unknown things that may not surfaced yet
3. Let be – it is about
   1. experiencing and embracing the ‘here and now’ by observing and noticing things around you
   2. enjoying the moment and
   3. learning from the experience.