Emotional Stress and Staying the Course

Something that sets real leaders apart from the crowd is their ability to stay the course. Leadership is about taking charge when things are hard. It's about remaining calm in stressful situations. I can't tell you how often I observe people absolutely sabotage themselves when they are so very close to absolute success. It's like sometimes people have a bomb ready to go off and the trigger is the moment success is about to knock. You may have witnessed this in other people. You might see a co-worker who is about to get a promotion have a total meltdown just before.

Sometimes people are working on becoming successful and the have a friend or a spouse or someone who starts really rattling the cage, pushing the drama at all the wrong times. It is critical that you stop living a roller coaster lifestyle if you want to be successful. Entire days of productivity can be wasted because you are angry or upset about something. If this happens often you'll feel like you work and work but never get ahead.

It is much better to feel a consistent neutral feeling than either extremes. Too much elation begs for a let down. Depression stifles everything. So how do you drop the drama? You refuse to let it start. You walk out of the room and refuse to have conflict when your spouse starts laying into you. You refuse to get angry or frustrated with what other people do. Most of all you realize that having expectations of other people is the leading cause of disappointment. Don't expect people to read your mind.

When I was much younger and used to brawl with guys, I learned an interesting fact. If you keep your calm, you almost always win. The guys who would lose their cool and come in a mad rush were easiest to defeat.

It's no secret that you think more clearly and efficiently when your mind isn't clouded with anger or despair. Next time you have a problem with a utility bill or a credit card company, instead of venting your frustrations with the automated system or the customer service representative try remaining calm, explaining things in a mellow manner and asking firmly but nicely for what you want. It almost always turns out to be better for you.

Strong leaders keep their cool. Can you?

All the best!
Bill White
http://www.successradio1111.com
http://www.synchronicity-expert.com