{"id":3182,"date":"2023-10-06T04:08:58","date_gmt":"2023-10-06T04:08:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/illuminategrowth.com.au\/?p=3182"},"modified":"2023-10-06T04:11:08","modified_gmt":"2023-10-06T04:11:08","slug":"overwhelmed-frustrated-isolated-are-you-a-stressed-woman-leader","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/illuminategrowth.com.au\/staging\/overwhelmed-frustrated-isolated-are-you-a-stressed-woman-leader\/","title":{"rendered":"Overwhelmed, Frustrated, Isolated: Are You a Stressed Woman Leader?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Today I\u2019d love to talk with you about stress\u2026<\/p>\n

Specifically,\u00a0leadership<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0stress\u2026<\/p>\n

Because leaders regularly encounter situations that can result in them feeling lost, isolated and overwhelmed\u2026<\/p>\n

Which inevitably impacts performance as well as\u00a0confidence\u00a0<\/strong>and even,\u00a0esteem.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Over the last decade…<\/p>\n

I have exclusively coached corporate women leaders and managers and have seen them come to me with a lot of recurring stress-related challenges.<\/p>\n

Identifying the challenge you\u2019re having is always your first step\u2026<\/p>\n

Which is why I thought it would be useful to provide this checklist so that you can define your own trigger point(s).<\/p>\n

Have a look at this list I’ve compiled\u2026<\/p>\n

And decide if any of these common challenges are causing your own stress levels to rise:<\/p>\n

1.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 You feel\u00a0judged<\/strong>\u00a0or criticised<\/p>\n

2.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 You feel isolated or\u00a0excluded<\/strong><\/p>\n

3.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 You can see\u00a0double-standards<\/strong>\u00a0occurring e.g. peers or senior leaders failing to behave in accordance with organisational values<\/p>\n

4.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 You feel pressured to perform and deliver, sometimes in seemingly\u00a0impossible circumstances<\/strong><\/p>\n

5.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Your performance is being judged\u00a0solely on numbers<\/strong>\u00a0\/ results, omitting other critical factors<\/p>\n

6.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 You feel\u00a0misunderstood<\/strong>\u00a0or unheard<\/p>\n

7.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 You are finding\u00a0decision-making\u00a0<\/strong>difficult<\/p>\n

8.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 You feel like the\u00a0risks<\/strong>\u00a0you\u2019re taking are too great<\/p>\n

9.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 You\u2019re regularly dealing with situations\u00a0outside of your control<\/strong>, or sphere of influence<\/p>\n

10.\u00a0 You feel\u00a0responsible\u00a0<\/strong>for others\u2019 careers and livelihoods<\/p>\n

11.\u00a0 You are having to\u00a0manage difficult people<\/strong><\/p>\n

12.\u00a0 \u00a0You feel <\/span>unsupported<\/strong><\/p>\n

13.\u00a0 You are trying to\u00a0meet impossible expectations<\/strong>\u00a0– either of your own making or from other people<\/p>\n

14.\u00a0 People expect you to\u00a0have all the answers<\/strong><\/p>\n

15.\u00a0 There is\u00a0not enough time\u00a0<\/strong>to get everything done<\/p>\n

16.\u00a0 You are\u00a0struggling to prioritise\u00a0<\/strong>tasks<\/p>\n

17.\u00a0 You feel the world is\u00a0not seeing the best of you<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

(To listen to me talk about combatting leadership stress in more depth, tune into my podcast,\u00a0How to Dramatically Reduce Leadership Stress<\/a>\u00a0ep106)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

How Is Stress Created?<\/h2>\n

Now you are fully aware of your own challenges (feel free to add to the list above), I\u2019d like you to consider this idea:<\/p>\n

Stress is created when you\u00a0attribute a particular meaning<\/em>\u00a0to your\u00a0situation<\/em>:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Example #1 \u201cThis workload is\u00a0stressful<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

Example #2 \u201cBob\u2019s behaviour\u00a0makes me mad.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n

Example #3 \u201cI don\u2019t have all the answers and it\u2019s so\u00a0overwhelming<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

A good way to start combatting feelings of stress is to learn how to\u00a0dissociate\u00a0<\/strong>yourself from the situation.<\/p>\n

In all three examples above, you are allowing the situation to affect you\u2026<\/p>\n

You are\u00a0personalising\u00a0<\/strong>the situation\u2026<\/p>\n

And telling yourself that the\u00a0situation<\/strong>\u00a0is making you\u00a0feel a particular way<\/strong>\u00a0(e.g. stressed, mad, overwhelmed).<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

(To listen to me talk about combatting leadership stress in more depth, tune into my podcast,\u00a0How to Dramatically Reduce Leadership Stress<\/a>\u00a0ep106)<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

So Let\u2019s Take a Different Approach\u2026<\/h2>\n

Let’s take a different approach…<\/p>\n

And look at each situation more objectively:<\/p>\n

With Example 1:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Instead of saying, \u201cThis workload is stressful\u201d,<\/em>\u00a0ask yourself:<\/p>\n

    \n
  • How<\/strong>\u00a0is the workload stressful (really)?<\/li>\n
  • How am I\u00a0framing<\/strong>\u00a0this situation to\u00a0make it feel<\/strong>\u00a0stressful?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

     <\/p>\n

    The situation itself (the workload) isn\u2019t stressful\u2026 it\u2019s\u00a0just<\/em>\u00a0a workload.<\/p>\n

    But\u00a0how you are approaching<\/em>\u00a0the challenge is potentially what is creating that feeling of stress.<\/p>\n

    Have you ever looked at a colleague with a similar workload who\u00a0doesn\u2019t<\/em>\u00a0seem stressed? What are they doing differently to you?<\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

    I coach a lot of high-achieving women\u2026<\/p>\n

    And the pressure they put on themselves is sometimes remarkable.<\/p>\n

    Does that resonate? \ud83d\ude09<\/p>\n

    And often the way they are\u00a0framing their situation\u00a0<\/strong>exacerbates their feeling of stress.<\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

    \n
    <\/div>\n