+61 4 1203 0947
carolyn@leadingperformance.com.au
Leading PerformanceLeading PerformanceLeading PerformanceLeading Performance
  • Ambitious Female Leaders
  • Accelerating Your Career
  • Book: “Confident, Candid & Courageous”
  • About Carolyn Stevens
  • Media Interactions
    • Turning Anxiety On Its Head
    • Meetings, Bloody Meetings
    • Make An Apology Really Count
    • Why Do We Avoid Tricky Conversations
    • Strategies for female senior executives
  • Leadership Blog Directory

Three Straightforward Steps To Zap Your Anxiety

    Home Emotional Intelligence Three Straightforward Steps To Zap Your Anxiety

    Three Straightforward Steps To Zap Your Anxiety

    By Carolyn Stevens | Emotional Intelligence | 0 comment | 20 May, 2009 | 0

    These steps will help you consistently model exemplary leadership.

    Your last bulletin encouraged you to be conscious of what’s been tugging at your anxiety-strings and to start reining-in your imagination. It promised you a straightforward, researched, three-step method for zapping your uneasiness and creating calmness. And here it is…

     

    Step 1: Manage Your Physiology

    Have you heard the saying that “physiology predicts state”?

    Unquestionably, when you adjust your physiology you adjust your emotional state. Check it out:

      • Just for a minute, think about something that typically has you feeling anxious
      • Notice how your body has manifested the anxiety…
          • What happened to your breathing? If you’re like most people, when you got anxious your breathing became more rapid and shallow as your diaphragm tensed.
          • Scan your body for other signs of muscle tension. Start at your scalp, move down to your jaw, then your neck, then your shoulders, etc. You’ll probably notice some tight spots.
          • How’s your facial expression? How are you holding your head and shoulders? Like a person who’s anxious holds them I expect.

    Now, think about how you hold your body when you’re feeling optimistic and self-assured…

            • Take some slow, deep breaths. Breathe as you do when you’re feeling optimistic and self-assured.
            • Purposefully, relax every single muscle in your body, beginning with your scalp and working down to your toes.
            • Deliberately, put a relaxed, warm expression on your face. Let your shoulders drop and hold your head high.

    My bet is that you’re feeling somewhat better already, right?

    Hmmm, I wonder, does a bird sing because it’s happy—or is it happy because it sings?

     

    Step 2: Manage Your Focus

    Managing your physiology will give you instant, short-term relief from the symptoms of anxiety—and you need to take steps two and three so you experience long-term relief…

    What are your thoughts focused on when you’re feeling anxious? What disaster are you catastrophising about, imagining happening over-and-over? (Oh no, not that shark that I described in your last bulletin!)

    Instead of directing your focus to what you don’t want, imagine what you do want to happen. Picture your preferred outcome in detail.

    When your ideal outcome transpires…what will you see, what will you hear, how will you feel? Dwell on that for a moment.

    Notice how your physiology has relaxed some more and your anxiety levels have decreased. Then…

     

    Step 3: Manage Your Actions

    As you imagine your ideal outcome occurring, step back and look at what you would have done, what steps you would have taken, to take you toward that ideal result. And then immediately begin to take those steps.

    By the way, because anxiety deadens creativity and clear thinking, you’ll notice that you’ll find it much easier to generate these steps in your new, relaxed state.

     

    Your Leadership Call to Action

    How well have you been modelling effective management of your thoughts and feelings? As I see it, leaders have a responsibility to support the effectiveness of others, and help alleviate their anxiety…

      • Decide to be alert to how you feel. Pay attention to those thoughts that hover around between your conscious and unconscious.
      • As soon as you notice any anxiety is present, intentionally nip it in the bud by:

    1. Shifting your physical demeanour

    2. Altering what you’re mentally focusing on

    3. Taking the action you need to take to manifest your ideal outcome

    Practice these three steps until they’re habitual. You’ll notice how you’re always at your best, even when the pressure’s on!

     

     

    ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

    Carolyn Stevens has worked with leaders for more than 25-years—hundreds of them.

    She’s supported leader after leader (including those who previously struggled to confront the difficult, let alone persuasively deal with the it) flourish—and become confident, courageous and impressively influential.

    Carolyn is authentic and results-oriented. She draws on an eclectic array of approaches, tools and techniques to suit the situation.

    No tags.

    Related Posts

    • Want To Stop Feeling Like an Imposter?

      By Carolyn Stevens | 0 comment

      “Maybe I’m not capable of being the leader that I want to be.” “I’m not confident that I can do a decent job as an executive.” “Who do I think I am? Truth be known,Read more

    • Optimism As A Choice

      By Carolyn Stevens | 0 comment

      Here’s a short but important message from Seth Godin:   Optimism As a Choice If your team is up by thirty points at halftime, it’s not optimistic to expect that you’re going to win–it’s aRead more

    • The Real Costs of You Feeling Anxious & Overwhelmed

      By Carolyn Stevens | 0 comment

      As a leader it’s essential that you don’t put “the cart before the horse”. We know that doesn’t work. And jumping into action when you feel anxious and overwhelmed, before you’ve developed a constructive mindset,Read more

    • How Do Brilliant Leaders Think?

      By Carolyn Stevens | 0 comment

      “Life isn’t about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself.” —George Bernard Shaw   Brilliant leaders think differently to not-so-brilliant leaders. This is good news—given that you’re 100% in control of the way you think.Read more

    • As a Female Leader, What Can You Do In These Challenging Times?

      By Carolyn Stevens | 0 comment

      I don’t think we have any option but to accept what’s going on in this interesting new world we live in—and plan a bright future for ourselves, both as a person on the planet andRead more

    Categories

    • Communication
    • Conflict Management/Tough Conversations
    • Delegation
    • Emotional Intelligence
    • Feedback
    • I'm OK, You're OK
    • Influencing Others
    • Meetings
    • People Leadership
    • Strategic Leadership
    • Teamwork
    • Time & Stress Management
    • Trust
    • You As A Leader
    • Your Career
    • 2020
    • 2019
    • 2018
    • 2017
    • 2016
    • 2015
    • 2014
    • 2013
    • 2012
    • 2011
    • 2010
    • 2009

    Recent Leadership Blogs

    • Are You Making THE Biggest Mistake Leaders Make? 10/11/2020
    • Want To Stop Feeling Like an Imposter? 12/10/2020
    • Optimism As A Choice 14/09/2020
    • The Real Costs of You Feeling Anxious & Overwhelmed 05/08/2020

    Contact

    Carolyn Stevens

    +61 412 030 947

    email

    PO Box 196
    North Sydney
    NSW 2059
    Australia

    Privacy Policy

    Copyright 2022 | Leading Performance Pty Ltd | All Rights Reserved | Site design by Baxter Studios
    • #11829 (no title)
    • “I Don’t Have A Safe Place To Talk Through My Fears And Concerns”
    • “I Don’t Like To Admit It, But There Are Times When I Avoid Confronting A Team Member”
    • “I Sometimes Avoid Jumping In And Dealing With Tricky Situations”
    • “I’m Certain I’m Not Always Seen As A Strong And Capable Leader”
    • “I’m Not Totally Confident That I Can Always Get Others To See Things My Way”
    • “I’m Often Buried With The Tactical And Operational, Which
      Prevents Me From Having Time To Think Strategically”
    • “I’m Strong Enough And Capable Enough To Solve My Own Problems”
    • “I’m Surviving, Not Thriving”
    • “Maybe I’m Not Capable Of Being The World-Class Executive That I Want To Be”
    • “There’s A Part Of Me That Wants To Be More Courageous And Speak My Truth More Often”
    • About Carolyn Stevens
    • Accelerating Your Career
    • AFR & VA
    • Ambitious Female Leaders
    • Blog
    • Book: Confident, Candid & Courageous
    • Checkout Book Confident Candid Courageous
    • Coaching Leaders
      • Career or Outplacement Coaching
      • Deal With Your Roadblocks
      • Leader Coaching
    • Consult
    • Home
    • Homepage
    • Leadership Blog
    • Leadership Blog Opt-In
    • Leadership Blog Opt-in
    • Leadership Blog Opt-in Confirmation
    • Logged Out
    • Login (redirect only)
    • Make An Apology Really Count
    • Media Interactions
    • Meetings, Bloody Meetings
    • Privacy Policy
    • Test
    • The Engaging Female Leader Questionnaire
    • The Engaging Female Leader Thank You
    • Turning Anxiety On Its Head
    • Why Do We Avoid Tricky Conversations
    • Your Coaching Resource Centre
    Leading Performance