Technology TransactionsHow Stressed Are You?
Is your life hectic, fast-paced and fraught with deadlines and crises? The picture many of us have of the superstar agent often includes a life lived like this. It is not surprising that many agents experience burnout at some point. After all, you can only push the body so far. When you live a hurry-up, not-enough-time existence, you trigger your body’s natural response of adrenalin release. You know that feeling…the heart quickens, the senses become more alert and the tension in your muscles is increased. It is the caveman “fight or flight” response. What you probably aren’t aware of is that you can become addicted to adrenalin.
The danger is that you become dependent on the adrenalin to fuel you and get you through your days. Like a rubber band that resumes its shape after being stretched, your body is designed to use the adrenalin rush for emergencies….allowing you to get by with less sleep and be super-alert and then return to a natural calm state. If, however that rubber band is continually stretched, there is a point where it begins to crack and then breaks. Your body is no different. The adrenal glands, as a part of your immune system, are designed to work on keeping you well and healthy. If you continually divert them and use them for fueling your energy, you will notice you get sick more. John Wanamaker said,“ People who cannot find time for recreation are obliged sooner or later to find time for illness.”
Are you addicted to adrenalin?
The adrenalin response can be intensely pleasurable and we can begin to “crave” it or structure our living so that we leave things to the last minute, counting on that “doing our best work under pressure” response. If you live this way long enough, it starts to feel very uncomfortable when it isn’t coursing through your veins. Eventually, however, you will pay the price.
Here are some questions to ask:
Do you overpromise and then rush to get it done at the last minute?
Do you drink coffee or other caffeinated drinks to keep going?
Do you react strongly to the unexpected?
Do you drive 5 or more miles over the speed limit, tailgate, and become impatient with other drivers?
Do you tend to run late?
Do you feel an inner rush or lack of calmness most of the time?
Do you talk a lot, even when people have stopped listening?
Do you find you attract more problems or upsets than you deserve?
Are you constantly thinking about work, even when you are home or on vacation?
Do you have your pager and/or phone on all the time?
Do you usually pull things off right at the last moment?
Do you have a compulsion to always “be doing” something?
Do you feel guilty when resting or relaxing?
Are you irritable and easily aggravated?
Is there a vague sense of depression when you aren’t working?
If you answered yes to 5 or more of these, you are probably using adrenalin as your energy source.
What Can You Do?
Are you ready to slow down, enjoy the moment and not push so hard? As in all behavior change, the first step is the awareness. You can then decide what behaviors are you going to change.
Identify your triggers that initiate the adrenalin rush and start eliminating them. Here are some triggers and solutions:
TRIGGERSOLUTION
Overpromising ResultsDeliberately underpromise,regardless of the other person’s reaction
Arriving just in time or lateLeave 15 minutes earlier for every appointment
Involved in lots of projectsPare it down by 50% or no more than 3
Continual use of caffeineCut it out (expect withdrawal symptoms)
Having lots of incompletionsStart completing everything 100%
Letting people walk over youExpand the boundaries you set with others
Driving too fastDrive at the speedlimit or 5 miles under
Should’s & Have to’sGet rid of shoulds- live your OWN agenda
Putting up with & tolerating thingsGet it done and tolerate NOTHING - re-educate others
Boredom is the gateway to peacefulness
“Every now and then go away, have a little relaxation, for when you come back to your work your judgment will be surer. Go some distance away because then the work appears smaller and more of it can be taken in at a glance and a lack of harmony and proportion is more readily seen.” - Leonardo Da Vinci
Be willing to feel bored. It may take 3-6 months before you stop craving the high. You will eventually find a new energy source kicks in-your natural passion for what’s important and what is truly valuable to you.
Life is too short to hurry. Living an adrenalin lifestyle robs you of the enjoyment and appreciation of the present moment. It is always nicer for others to be around someone who is not stressed and hurried. You’ll find you attract more “nice” people to you. It could be the best thing you do for your business and yourself this year!