![]() The general finding is that the “right” amount-a happy medium-of stress contributes to peak performance. The Yerkes-Dodson Law is based on a series of classic psychological research studies, which measured the relationship between stress and performance. It is not in spite of-but because of-your innate ability to respond to stress that you are able to meet that deadline, to nail that presentation, to make that decision. When that bear is a huge deadline, a make-it-or-break-it presentation, or a tough decision that has to be made, that natural fight-or-flight response allows you to react in a faster, more acute way. Your senses become more acute, and your body becomes ready to respond. When you come across a bear in the woods, do you run? Or do you grab a branch and fight? The instant the bear comes into view, your heart rate elevates, breathing speeds up, muscles tighten, digestion and other nonessential functions slow down or stop, and your heart begins to push blood into your extremities. The stress we feel is our own internal alarm going off to say, “Don’t forget, pay attention, think this through.” The sources of stress are often the things that we most need to attend to. All of these things are stressful because they are important. ![]() ![]() Building a customer base, clearly communicating your brand and your worth, watching the budget, growing a network, hiring contractors or the first employee. It is the natural response to doing something that is both difficult and important. Stress: life-saving and deadlyįeeling stressed is appropriate. You have drive, experience, and competitive intensity you need coaching and practice on your pacing, just like I did. Intelligence, creativity, ability to communicate, level of focus, perseverance, expertise, capacity to solve problems, decision-making skills, professional network: You will need all of these, but they are not sufficient for success. You’ve realized that you have a product or service that people need and want.Īs an online entrepreneur, you are what determines the success or failure of your business. You are the center around which your business emanates. You’ve learned how to master your craft or area of expertise. You are likely beginning a business because you have experience focusing intensely on a problem until you come up with a solution. You know what it is like to put in long hours. You need a strategy for how you will approach the intense demands of starting a business. We should stop treating our businesses like short sprints. ![]() I learned the hard way that failing to have a pacing strategy can lead to disaster. I was used to speed and competitive intensity, but I wasn’t used to running that fast for that long. Throwing up in front of a packed grandstand was not my finest moment. I stumbled over the finish line, leaned over, and vomited all over the track. I ran my first 400 m like I was being chased by a lion.Ī strange thing began to happen about 75 m before the finish line: My form began to collapse, my strong sprinting legs began to feel like dead weight, my arms began to swing back and forth, twisting across my upper body. There are moments to ease off and moments to kick into high gear. The 400 m (one lap around the track about a quarter of a mile) is a different sport altogether. There is very little competitive strategy beyond mastering the starting blocks. Before I became a clinical psychologist, I was a small-town high school track star.
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