Have you ever sat in a meeting where your heart races, your palms sweat, and you feel like you’re losing control? I certainly have. Just last month, I had a chance to close a high-profile client. Surprisingly, sales techniques are not covered in Bible college, so I still have a lot to learn. While I’m getting better at trusting my abilities in these conversations, my mind was racing and I felt overwhelmed. My stomach was in knots, and I ended the call feeling like I had just run a hundred-meter sprint. Even with my progress, the pressure I put on myself left me stressed to the max.

In this article, we’ll explore practical strategies for regaining your direction in stressful situations, including breathing techniques, affirming your core values, and using affirmations to realign yourself with your mission.

By the end, you’ll have actionable steps to confidently navigate any challenging moment while fostering solutions rather than reacting negatively.

The Importance of Finding Your North

In demanding roles, a clear sense of direction is essential for personal and professional growth. Identifying your north helps you understand not just where you are heading but why. It is your lighthouse amid life and work’s uncertainties, empowering you to navigate through turmoil with clarity. Too often, high-stress situations trigger reactions that are counterproductive to our ultimate goals. The following blueprint will aid your ability to lead yourself and others with strength in high-stress moments.

Recognizing the Moment of Stress

The first step in addressing high-stress moments is recognition. Here are a few signs you might be experiencing chronic stress:

• Physical Symptoms: Tension, headaches, fatigue, irritability.
• Emotional Indicators: Anxiety, frustration, overwhelming sense of defeat.
• Behavioral Changes: Increased engagement in distractions, withdrawal from responsibilities, marked changes in eating or sleeping patterns.

I feel stress manifesting in my shoulders and throughout my body, a low-grade energy tightening its grip around me. I know I’m in a stress response when my breathing becomes shallow, my shoulders tense, and my mind races. I vividly recall a specific interaction with a guest during my time as the Aquatics Manager at the Great Wolf Lodge—the first time I was yelled at. In that moment, the customer’s finger jabbed at my chest, his face inches from mine as he questioned my competence and threatened my job. My body was gearing up for a fight, and I felt like a mere passenger in my own experience.

Recognizing these signs is an opportunity for curiosity, not shame or frustration. Think of these symptoms as an indicator light on your dashboard, signaling that it’s time to take a look under the hood. By evaluating and responding appropriately, you can prevent a breakdown. On the other hand, avoiding or numbing these signs will only leave you stranded on the side of the road.

Step 1: Breathe and Recenter Yourself

When stress hits, your immediate response might be to panic or react. Instead, take a moment to pause and breathe. Breathing techniques can help you recenter your thoughts and emotions.

• Deep Breathing Exercise: Close your eyes and take deep, slow breaths. Inhale through the nose to a count of four, hold for a count of four, and exhale through the mouth to six. Repeat for several cycles until you feel calmer. Try this now. Take a moment.
• Grounding Techniques: Focus on your physical sensations. What do you feel? What sounds do you hear? Engaging with the present moment can help ground you and reduce feelings of anxiety. I often use this to refocus when I am struggling to organize my thoughts, listening to the ambient noise in my office, or feeling the weight of my body in my chair. 

Step 2: Reconnect with Your Purpose

Once you’ve taken the time to breathe, it’s essential to reconnect with your purpose. This might look different for everyone, but it’s critical to identify what drives you forward in life. Questions to consider include:

• What motivates me?
• How does my work tie into what motivates me?
• What legacy do I want to leave?

I didn’t fully grasp the importance of reconnecting with my purpose until we embarked on our entrepreneurial journey. Launching and growing AXIOS has been one of my life’s most fulfilling yet challenging experiences, stretching my capacity to the max. I have experienced my fair share of tears in the middle of the night trying to figure out a way forward. On days when I feel like a baby learning to walk—teetering on the edge of another faceplant—reminding myself of our “why” gives me the strength to stand back up. 

Growing up, I believed my purpose was to create wealth and use it to fund initiatives worldwide. However, as I’ve come to know myself better, I realize my true purpose is to create quality experiences for Britney, myself, and those we love and serve. From multi-week road trips to taking my parents snowshoeing to coaching a client on how to fly fish while discussing life—these moments matter. 

I refuse to give up the freedom I have in running my own business. Centering on purpose reminds me that the stress and demands of building something from nothing are worth the exchange for time and freedom, allowing me to create special moments with the people who matter most to me.

By clarifying your purpose, you create a mental framework to guide your decisions during intense moments. Write down these reflections in a journal for future reference.

Step 3: Check-In With Your Core Values

Understanding your core values is essential for navigating any high-stress situation. Core values represent your principles and beliefs. They define what matters most to you. To build your core values:

• Reflect on Past Experiences: Think about moments when you felt fulfilled or satisfied and identify the values present in those situations.
• List Your Values: Consider what principles you cannot compromise. Examples include honesty, community, growth, and balance.
• Rank Your Values: Order these values based on their significance to you.

I’ve delved into the importance of establishing core values in greater detail in THIS BLOG, but here’s a brief overview for this article. Two pivotal moments have brought my core values into sharp focus. The first followed a painful breakup, prompting me to question what I should prioritize in life if marriage was no longer an option. The second moment came when I walked into the emergency room to see my grandfather for the last time. Both experiences served as powerful and painful mirrors, forcing me to confront what truly mattered to me. Was I living in a way that honored those values? Unfortunately, in both cases, the answer was no. Thankfully, I leveraged that painful awareness to grow into the man I am today. 

Our core values are essential in defining our boundaries and simplifying our decision-making. Often, when I feel lost, anxious, or frustrated, I realize I’ve been neglecting one or more of my core values. Ultimately, when I focus my energy and attention on living in accordance with what matters most, I become the most confident and clear version of myself.

Step 4: Affirm Who You Are

Affirmations are like little pep talks you give yourself—powerful reminders of the person and leader you’re committed to becoming. To create affirmations, reflect on the values and purposes you’ve discovered in your journey.

Here are a few examples to inspire you:

• I am capable of handling any challenge that comes my way.
• I choose to respond to stress with calm and clarity.
• I am in control of my thoughts and emotions.
• I am resilient and can overcome obstacles.
• I prioritize my well-being and take breaks when needed.
• I trust in my ability to solve problems effectively.
• I am surrounded by supportive colleagues who uplift me.
• I embrace challenges as opportunities for growth.
• I am worthy of success and happiness in my career.
• I will take one step at a time and focus on what I can control.

Whenever life gets stressful, take a moment to recite these affirmations. They can help ground you and reinforce your values and purpose. To keep them front and center, write them on sticky notes and place them in spots you frequent—like your workspace or refrigerator. That way, you’ll be reminded of your commitment to yourself when you need it most!

Building Solutions Instead of Reacting Negatively

You can create solutions rather than react to problems once you’ve centered yourself through breath, purpose, and affirmation. High-stress moments often lead us to default to reactionary behaviors that can create negative cycles and frustration for you and others. Instead:

• Evaluate the Situation: Take a step back, clarify your understanding of the challenge, and acknowledge your feelings.
• Formulate a Plan: Think through possible solutions post-evaluation rather than allowing stress to govern your actions. What is the next right step?
• Execute with Confidence: Move forward, knowing you are aligned with the highest and best version of yourself.

Where Do We Go From Here?

Life will always present challenges. You can navigate these moments with confidence and strength by implementing the strategies we’ve discussed—breathing, reflecting on your purpose, affirming your values, and constructing solutions. High-stress situations no longer have to derail you; instead, they can become stepping stones towards greater self-awareness and growth.

Understanding your compass gives you the power to lead yourself and those around you with purpose. Emotional intelligence, self-awareness, and affirmation create a ripple effect that encourages positive change in various aspects of life.

As you embark on this journey, remember that if you need deeper guidance in building your own compass to navigate any map, consider reaching out for support. Schedule a discovery call today HERE and confidently start aligning with your direction! Life is not about merely surviving stress but about thriving through it.

In these moments of reflection, take heart and know that every step you take brings you closer to living your purpose. Through high-stress seasons, we often discover the strength and determination we didn’t realize we had within us.