Are You an Ex'wreck'utive?
Posted on June 27, 2014 by Pamela Thorp, One of Thousands of Life Coaches on Noomii.
Today's culture of work comes with an ample helping of stress. Reflect on your own Ex'wreck'utive status and if one, start here to reclaim a balance.
The corner office comes with its perks. You’ve reached a place in your career that affords you a level of respect, stimulating challenges, the ability to influence change in profound ways, a feeling of accomplishment and a salary that allows for a comfortable lifestyle. It can also come with the downside of overwhelm and a sense of unrelenting pressure: 4 a.m. emails you’re expected to respond to; responsibility for millions of dollars in revenue; the need to be ‘on’ at an early morning meeting after a transatlantic flight….not to mention the influence of stress on your health, mood, relationships and family life (and you can pause here to add any additional areas you can identify).
Do you recognize yourself in the above scenario? Then you may qualify as an Ex’wreck’utive. So keep reading because pressures do not stop, but your response to them can change. And that’s where the money is.
It is well documented by now that stress is a major contributor to many of our maladies (both mental and physical). There are small steps you can start to take to raise your immunity, improve your health profile and increase your overall efficacy. No one is impervious to stress but those with high-demand jobs with a daily avalanche of incoming stimuli are ripe for over-activation of the threat signal, which fires from the amygdala. This is a walnut-sized part of your brain designed for survival, built to kick in under life or death circumstances. It’s good it’s there, we need it on occasion to survive, but as a coaching client of mine recently came to recognize, “It’s a fax, not a fire!” So unchecked stress can be like living with a smoke alarm that starts to shriek every time a neighbor makes a piece of toast.
Better self care will mitigate some of this needless level of response, however high achievers or perfectionists often perceive this as ‘a waste of time’, setting off subtle alarm bells. The irony of this is that if you do take that time (and it doesn’t have to be much) your clarity and efficacy will improve. At this point good science supports it. But more importantly I want to provide some immediately actionable tips that will start to cool your overheated adrenals (the glands that pump out stress hormones) and help you feel and function better. If you’re reading this far something is resonating so trust your executive instincts and try these tips.
Tip #1: No time to breathe? This only takes 10 seconds (you’re breathing anyway so get more bang from your O2). Close your eyes (optional) and inhale through your nose on a slow count of 3, hold it for 2, then release on a 5 count. A little more time? Do a few more rounds. This promotes transfer from the ‘stress response’ department of your brain to the ‘relaxation center’. The technique has been around for centuries, but has been taught in ‘The CEO Executive Stress Project’ in major corporations.
Tip #2: Stop holding your breath. Stress has a way of promoting extremely shallow breathing (an un-necessary threat response unless you’re being stalked by a lion). Sit in your chair with good posture. As you inhale deeply bring your arms out to to your sides, raising them to the ceiling (arms an inch or two away from your head). Make fists and as you exhale, slowly pull down bending at the elbow. Your fists should end up an inch above your shoulders. Extra bonus if you infuse the action with an intention, for example: ‘I am releasing a little more tension and stress with each exhale.’ Make the ‘mantra’ yours.
Tip #3: Drink water! You hear this all the time but this time do it! That mid-afternoon cloudiness or lack of motivation could be simple dehydration. (Bonus tip: Try the app ‘Waterlogged’ which will send you reminders to sip throughout the day.)
That should get you started and if you incorporate even one of these actions or just entertain the notion, you’ve started a process. Small steps create a cascading effect and I encourage you to start where you are, not where you wish you were.
I’ll end with one of my favorite quotes by ‘The Great One’, Wayne Gretzky: “You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.” So take one now—it will benefit your life in so many ways.
Pamela Thorp, LCSW
Motivational Coach
EFT Practitioner
Certified Abundance Coach
Licensed Psychotherapist
www.guidedpersonalsolutions.com
pamelathorp.gps@gmail.com
