While some stress can be positive in the short-term, chronic negative stress leads to burnout and irreparable damage to our bodies. It’s important that we don’t stress out! You will want to take steps to avoid and minimize the impact of damaging stress in order to feel healthy and ready to take on the future.
Stress is the body’s response to a perceived threat or major challenge. The release of adrenaline and cortisol activates the body’s flight-or-flight response. It gives us our best chance of survival, whether we choose to stay and fight or run away.
Every day business is full of situations that can set our body on full alert. Navigating change is a handful for business leaders. Perhaps its rapid business growth, employee retention, or moving through a succession process. Consider the following:
Start Planning Early
Many business owners wait too long to start thinking about and planning for changes. As a result decisions need to be made quickly. This creates additional challenges and generates more pressure.
To minimize stress, give yourself time to work through a plan. The questions will still be difficult and the workload high, but knowing you have time to make decisions, get advice, and do the work will help put your mind and body at ease.
Seek Support
Extra work can be handled with an additional hand or two. A coach or counsellor can help you navigate the emotional aspects of change.
If you are hesitant about getting support, a first step might be talking to someone who will help you understand why you feel the need to go it alone and guide you toward becoming more comfortable asking for assistance.
Take Care of Yourself
We can take steps to minimize stress, but it is impossible to eliminate it completely from our lives. Taking good care of our bodies and minds helps us to best handle the stressful situations that we can’t avoid.
It becomes even more important during times of high stress to eat well, exercise regularly, get adequate sleep, and take breaks. This is usually when we do the exact opposite. Make self-care a part of your plan and get support to help hold yourself to your plan.
Business will never be completely stress-free, but with planning, support, and focus on your needs, you can alleviate much of the stress feeling your best.