Pressure. Blessing in disguise.
In this article I look at the positive effects pressure can have on you. Hard to believe? Please read on.
When I ask my coaching clients to describe their associations with pressure, the most frequent responses include: anxiety, frustration, lack of sleep, stress, loss of control, and reduced efficiency.
These negative associations are often accompanied by actions such as tensing up, perspiring, tightening your chest or nausea.
Much less often do my coaching clients associate pressure with positive opportunities around optimising, innovating, and personal or professional growth. In these cases, the words are often said with enthusiasm and conviction, accompanied by a smile or confident posture.
The examples above show how interconnected the psychological effects of pressure are with the physical reactions they trigger in us.
Knowing this - how comes that most people have negative associations with pressure? It is our blueprint to choose negative over positive associations - something which goes back to our ancestors ‘fight or flight’ state of readiness. However, humankind has moved on from the days of living in caves and we are capable of shifting our mindset if we want and choose to do so.
How to make Pressure a ‘Blessing’?
We live in a time of speed. The faster something works, the better. This is also the case for how we treat discomfort.
Let’s be honest: it is much easier to react to the signs of pressure by taking a pill than by looking for the right response to address the symptoms at its root – our associations with pressure.
If we want to learn to drive, we take driving lessons. If we want to learn a language, we enrol in a language course. The good news is that we can also learn to embrace pressure with a positive mindset which not only helps to better manage pressure but helps us benefit from it.
The examples above have demonstrated the ripple effect between physical and emotional responses. Changing our mindset also changes our emotional and physical responses and vice versa.
If you are unsure how to change your approach to pressure from a negative to a positive mindset – coaching provides a safe space, the skill and the support for you to achieve this.
The ‘Intersection Point’ :
During my coaching, my clients become aware of what choices they have about embracing pressure. I call this the Intersection Point.
This is when you stop to decide which direction you choose to follow: stick with the familiar route and continue to have negative associations with pressure? Or choose to embrace pressure with a positive mindset – a route that you might not know yet, but which provides positive opportunities and improved wellbeing.
If you are unsure how to achieve this shift, I can work with you on developing and anchoring your positive mindset.