Spring Clean Your Stress Management
I often have the thought, “Man, I am the busiest I have ever been!” and then fast-forward a few months later, and think, “I thought that was busy….But NOW, now I am definitely the busiest I have ever been!”
<Raise your hand if you have had the exact same conversation ?!?!>
Spring Cleaning & A Disney Call-Out
Recently, I was spring cleaning my house. “Tasmanian Devil” style, as I like to call it - because there is a certain frenetic energy to it.
It looks something like this - I pick up clutter in the family room, bring it to the bathroom, start picking up the bathroom, and then bring a glass to the kitchen, start the dishes, realize the kitchen towels need replacing, and end up in the basement. Start the laundry... And on it goes. There’s a little bit accomplished in each room; some messes are just moved to new rooms, and nothing is done done.
While in the basement, starting the load of laundry, I noticed the paintbrushes and decided to start an overdue painting project. That, as of right now, is still incomplete. <le sigh>
THIS. IS. A. TRUE. STORY, FRIENDS. A TRUE STORY.
While painting, I was jammin’ to my music - Disney hits, duh.
Pressure, sung by Jessica Darrow in Encanto, came on, and I was struck by the lyrics. (YouTube Video Linked, you’re welcome)
Pressure like a grip, grip, grip, and it won't let go, whoa
Pressure like a tick, tick, tick 'til it's ready to blow, whoa, oh, oh
Give it to your sister; your sister's stronger
See if she can hang on a little longer
Who am I if I can't carry it all?
If I falter
Under the surface, I hide my nerves, and it worsens, I worry something is gonna hurt us
Under the surface, the ship doesn't swerve as it heard how big the iceberg is
Under the surface, I think about my purpose, can I somehow preserve this?
Line up the dominoes; a light wind blows
You try to stop it tumbling, but on and on, it goes
Yikes. How does Disney SEE me?!?!
Trying to do all the things for everyone, not feeling like I was doing anything well. Thinking about all the balls I am juggling, and the many it feels like are being dropped - without even my awareness.
Self-Reflection & Stress Management
Without a doubt, for many of us, this is a busy time of the year. Some of us were spoiled by the slower pace of spring break - either through trips or many of our colleagues being away. Now, we put in that last push before summer. Those of us with school-aged children are getting weary looking ahead to the end of the school year, and there’s pressure to balance work/life/school and enjoy the weather. As stress ramps up, so too do fear, discomfort, and the risk of dysregulation and dysfunction.
It’s always important for us to know and recognize our stress-reaction tendencies, but it is particularly important in times of transition - big transition, little transition, seasonal transition.
At Failure Lab Training, we think and talk a lot about our tendencies in regard to failure, stress, & discomfort. We even have catchy sticky names for them <shameless promotional plug: check out the Failure, Stress, & Discomfort Index (FSDI) and its archetypes>
I’m an obsessor (freeze archetype) all day. I tend to over-focus on .. all the things. Which, at my best, makes me really interested in solving problems and seeking solutions for the things that trouble my communities and the world around me. At my worst, I become hyper-analytical. I catastrophize. I think of all the possible solutions and failures, question my decisions, lean into perfectionism, and get stuck. I also ruminate. A lot.
When I am in FULL stress-mode and extra under pressure, I can push into an over-dialed survivalist (fight archetype), consider the perspectives and points of view of others less, and make quick, more short-sighted decisions. I can become bossy - not in a bossy = boss kind of way, in a not-easy-to-interact-with kind of way.
Working deeply with Failure Lab Training and the FSDI has supercharged my self-awareness, I’ve learned to notice when these tendencies are showing up in less helpful ways and take steps to alleviate my stress (breathing, moving my body, mindfulness practices). While I realize that self-reflection is a “forever” kind of practice, in the past year, I have really noticed a change in how I interact with myself and the people around me.
Do yourself and your team/family/people-that-have-to-deal-with-you-on-the-regular a favor and do a little self-reflecting today. How do you show up when you are stressed/overwhelmed/uncomfortable? How is it working out for you? Where is there room to grow?
Spring is a good time to revisit self-reflection and consider how our tendencies are manifesting today.
Author: Courtney Currie-Simmons
Interested in bridging this type of self-reflection and emotional intelligence skill-building to your organization?
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