Getting from stress to flow

From stress to flow

Our inner state holds the key to your success and happiness as a senior leader or executive.

The demands of leadership can often lead to feelings of stress, doubt, and overwhelm. These emotions, if left unaddressed, can have profound effects on your health, mental clarity, productivity, and relationships both in and out of the workplace.

What's critical to understand is that the longer you remain in this state, the more challenging it becomes to regain your energy, vibrancy, and ability to take effective action.

Consequences of Stress and being in a low state:

1. Impaired Decision-Making: Stress can cloud your judgment and impair your decision-making abilities. As a leader, your choices have a significant impact on your team and organization, and poor decisions can lead to adverse outcomes.

2. Reduced Productivity: Chronic stress often leads to decreased productivity. You may find it challenging to focus on tasks, meet deadlines, or efficiently manage your responsibilities.

3. Decreased Resilience: Stress weakens your resilience in the face of challenges. You may become more reactive and less adaptable, which can hinder your ability to navigate change effectively.

4. Negative Impact on Health: Prolonged stress can have serious health implications, including increased risk of heart disease, hypertension, and mental health disorders. Your physical and mental well-being are essential for effective leadership.

5. Strained Relationships: Stress can strain your relationships with colleagues, team members, and even your loved ones outside of work. This can lead to a breakdown in communication and collaboration.

6. Burnout: Left unchecked, chronic stress can lead to burnout, a state of physical and emotional exhaustion. Burnout can result in a loss of enthusiasm for your work and a decrease in overall job satisfaction.

7. Impact on Organizational Culture: Your stress as a leader can impact the overall culture of your organization. It can set a precedent for how stress is managed and tolerated within the workplace, affecting the well-being of your entire team.

It's essential to recognize that stress is not just a personal issue; it has organizational implications. As a leader, managing your stress effectively is not only beneficial for your well-being but also critical for the success and harmony of your team and the organization as a whole.

I've walked that path myself, as many executives and senior leaders do. There were times when I found myself lingering in a low state for longer than I desired. It was during these moments of introspection and determination that I committed to discovering how to bounce back faster and maintain a consistent state of thriving.

So, you might wonder, how do we transition from feeling stressed, doubtful, and overwhelmed to becoming energized, positive, vibrant, in a state of flow, taking decisive action, and maintaining a sense of calm and relaxation?

Here are six key areas, each building upon the other, that provide the roadmap:

1. Sleep and nutrition: Make sure you're getting enough sleep and eating a healthy diet. Lack of sleep and poor nutrition can exacerbate feelings of stress and overwhelm. Seems basic, but still neglected by many.

2. Physical movement: Regular physical activity can help release positive hormones, such as endorphins, and boost your energy levels.

3. Watch your mind sabotage and self-talk: You become what you believe. We sabotage ourselves unconsciously every day. The first thing you can do is to learn to shift your negative self-talk into a compassionate and empowering one.

4. Gratitude: Practicing gratitude can help you focus on the positive aspects of your life and raise your positive vibrations.

5. Envisioning: Visualize the version of yourself that you want to be - here connecting with the positive feelings associated with that version of yourself is key.  Besides Vision boards accelerate the process of manifesting it.

6. Embody in action - acting from that greater version of self: This involves making different decisions, thinking differently, and acting differently.

CONSISTENCY is key to achieving faster and more lasting results.

In my work with leaders, I like to bring Mental Fitness and vision Boards to accelerate the changes.


Use this pyramid as a checklist to verify what you need to strengthen to live and lead in a thriving state, as it does show up in your leadership effectiveness.

Have a week in flow and with positive energy.

And if you look for your flow, I'm here to help you.