“How Do You Handle High-Pressure Moments?”
This past year or so has seen a considerable incline in mental health awareness, reports of increased stress and pressure and anxiety and rightfully so.
This past year kicked our ass, but pressure is what creates diamonds, and diamonds are not formed overnight.
Pressure is in fact a privilege.
It means you’re in a position that many can only imagine being in.
Some of the greatest stories ever told through books, movies, songs have been the result of some of the most incredibly negative experiences, immense stress and pressure.
The key element is how you handle it.
Buckling under pressure has resulted in addictions, drugs, alcoholism and other destructive behavior.
Doubling down and betting on yourself when times are tough and something seems insurmountable, that is when we create something unique. Something that resonates. Something relatable and amazing.
Don’t crack under pressure. Pressure can be flipped on its head and turned into something great.
I’m often asked how I handle pressure, when I address large audiences, several hundred or a few thousand people when I’m on stage.
I think back to when I was a kid.
When I played pick up baseball and I got up to bat.
What did we all say or at least think?
‘It’s the bottom of the ninth, 2 outs, bases are loaded. This is for the game.’
Or you take your shot in basketball and you’d go ‘3-2-1, it’s good!’
What incredible pressure to put on yourself as a child.
When the fact of the matter is, in either of those real world situations the pressure would be palpable. Unfathomable even.
World Series, Game 7, you’re the guy at bat to win the game… Why did we do that to ourselves as kids?
We wanted to amp ourselves up. We wanted to push ourselves to perform. Convince ourselves that we could handle the pressure.
That is where you need to go in your mind today when you are faced with pressure. You handled it then and you can handle it now.
Take a lesson from your 10 year old self and put the privilege of pressure to work for you and do great things.
