Pressure and stress are not the same, but pressure can turn into stress when you keep ruminating about the past events or future outcomes in a negative way.
I often hear people say that they perform better when placed in a situation of high-pressure. However, there is a thin line between stress and pressure, and once stress comes into the picture, our problem-solving capability touches zero, which further intensifies the pressure.
Some of the people that I admire the most in my life have this skill of maintaining their calm even in high-pressure conditions. This is a skill that is most desired while selecting people at the top. Indeed, once you are a C-suite executive, no matter what you or your team delivers, it has your name on it. The success, of course, belongs to the team, but the failure is only yours. Remember, every bad thing (misalignment, mistakes, miscommunication etc.) in the company is because of you. It is the direct/indirect result of some decision you took or some decision you ignored to act on.
Work pressure, especially at the top level, is inevitable. However, whether you let it turn into stress or not is in your own hands. A dynamic work environment requires you to adapt continuously – so, instead of thinking, ‘Why me?’ – think about ‘How much it would matter after a couple of years’ and work your way through the situation calmly.
‘Never Succumb to stress. Accept your position in the big scheme of things when working under pressure. You will come out of it shining.’
To Dos:
Whatever work you do, easy or hard, irrespective of the industry, some kind of pressure will always be there. So, don’t take stress. Accept the pressure and see it as part of your work, and it would no longer feel like stress.
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