The Stress Theme

If there is an overarching theme among professionals who take their career seriously, one of the top selections would have to be handling stress. Since you are conscientious to do a great job that matters to others, you will experience the pressures of producing excellent work in a timely fashion. There are lots of clients, lots of projects, lots of demands, lots of changes and delays.

Collectively, they can wear and tear you down, if you don’t manage yourself through them all. Managing stress is a discipline you will develop throughout your career. While strengthening your stress-managing muscles, be aware that there are some myths about managing your stress that will lead you astray.

A Stress Myth

For instance, I read in an article in Forbes magazine that caught my attention. It was posted last summer, and I was surprised by a statement made by the author.

“Burnout is often incorrectly mistaken for prolonged stress, though chronic stress can induce burnout, depending on why such stress occurs. In general, stress occurs as a normal reaction to external stimuli or pressures.”

While the author is correct that prolonged stress is often misdiagnosed as burnout, it is not true that stress occurs (or caused) from external pressures. Stress is actually an internal fabrication of how you perceive the situation to be.

In fact, the author goes on to give 3 examples of professional situations, concluding with this summary:

“In each case, burned out professionals perceive themselves as unable to carry out the jobs they believe embody their professional values and achieve their aspirations no matter how hard they work.”

For your own well-being, understand that stress is induced by your internal perceptions, not your external environment.  How you perceive your situation determines your stress. Stress is the result of the story you tell yourself about the situation you are in, not a characteristic of the situation itself.

It’s not the work that gets you. It’s the story you tell yourself about the work.  Your perceptions drive your emotions, and then your actions. Do you feel frantic and hurried? Or is it focused and determined? Two different responses to the same situation. The work doesn’t change. How you perceive the work is the only thing that changes.

The Stress Lesson

Whether it is busy season, a difficult client, an uncooperative colleague or the volume of projects, you can view them as impossible and overwhelming (stressful) or as moments to increase your mental and emotional resilience.

This lesson takes time to learn and those who have thrived in the profession have learned it well. While you are enjoying your summer moments, routinely remind yourself that your work, relationships and career are energizing and purposeful; that you matter, your work is important and you are grateful for your opportunities.