Efficient Living: Understanding pressure.

We've all felt pressure from time to time. For most of us, pressure comes from self expectations to perform, or the perceived reactions of others - and sometimes a combination.

Some of my pressure situations

I've placed myself in situations where I have spoken to an audience of a few thousand, where you can hear collective reactions like the sharp intake of breath from manufactured suspense - in real-time. (Once underway, I found it thrilling!) I've been interviewed by the media many times, and been involved with a range of local and international project sizes with large teams, also I've felt pressure in isolation from working alone. I've been in high-stress conflict situations as most of us have though I've also been rescued by a search and rescue team, thankfully just once. I've had multiple ambulance rides. I've also been involved in championship-level sports in two codes: one design sailing and table tennis.

What I'm saying is that I think it is fair to say that I have experienced a lot of pressure of various types. I'm not unique in that I've had these different pressure types, though all situations are unique.

Pressure types

The main types I have personally experienced include:

• The pressure to do a task, with and without a deadline

• The pressure to not make an ass of one's self in front of an audience

• The immediate yet sustained pressure to perform like in a race

• The immediate and urgent pressure to perform, like in a match when you're one point down, it is 'match point', and you need to score to stay in the game - or just as pressuring, it is 'match point' and you need to score the next point to win.

These are all different types of pressure, and can change with the following:

• The degree of expectations you place on yourself

• The amount of expectations you perceive from the people you care about

• Whether or not there is an audience and the type of audience (eg live, or broadcast)

The consequences of pressure

Pressure can often lead to detrimental 'self-talk', excessive overthinking, and a divided focus that hampers task execution. Consequences of poorly managed pressure have included for me:

• A failure to start, feeling paralyzed by the weight of expectations

• Work commences in a rushed and unprepared manner, undermining performance quality

• A significant loss of focus that led to mistakes and subpar results.

Ultimately, managing pressure effectively is crucial to maintaining clarity and ensuring optimal performance in any task.

"Prior Preparation Prevents Poor Performance"

The quote in recent years is often attributed to former US Secretary of State James Baker, however, he attributed the mantra to his grandfather, so it has to be far older than Mr Baker - anyhow I digress. The main point is that there are certain things you can do to upskill yourself, in preparation for something that is known to cause pressure.

Setting your expectations are critical, and while your goal might to be win a championship, remember that others are trying to as well - so even if winning is a realistic goal, it could be realistic for several people, and there usually is only one winner. For those who don't do well with pressure, setting goals aligned with equaling or improving personal bests can significantly reduce pressure - and make those susceptible to 'choking' or losing focus to perform better overall.

About Time

It is helpful generally to have a firm understanding of time. That the past has happened and can't be changed. That the medium-to-distant future has yet to happen, so thinking about the future, particularly the distant future, is speculation.

All that is real is 'now', and the immediate future in relation to doing the task at hand.

Also about time is the recognition of when pressure is building. As soon as you notice it, it is time to reset, to refocus.

Here's what has worked for me

I welcome the pressure
By consciously thinking: "OK, I can feel the pressure, good. Now it is time to focus". By acknowledging the pressure I accepted that exists, allowing me to move forward with greater focus. In my view, it is a mistake to try and fight pressure, to repress or deny it, as that results in a further loss of focus, and in some cases, even adds to the pressure - as I already have the existing pressure, and gave myself more pressure by thinking about pressure!

Breathe
Take a deep breath, and if you have a routine, then use it to refocus.

Focus
You'll notice that the above two points are mostly about focus, and that's no coincidence. The issues that arise from pressure are almost always as a consequence of a partial or complete loss of focus.

Accept that the notion of whether or not pressure is good or bad is a judgment. There are times that pressure can be a great driver to achieve excellence, though equally cause failure - and everything in between.

Achieving high performance is all about what you do, and to perform at your best usually involves as complete as possible focus on the task(s) at hand.

Routines that have worked for me

I use routines to regain focus in the moment, to accomplish what I have set out to do:

• Start right now, or if 'now' is not practical, then schedule a time to start - then start.

• In championship table tennis, when I feel the need for additional focus, I stretch by putting my hands over my head and draw a deep breath, tap my racquet on the floor twice, and exhale sharply, making a noise.

• For competitive sailing, I would go through a literal routine of checks, to ensure that the sail trim and boat trim were optimum, look at the waves and where I was going to 'thread the boat', look for wind changes in direction and strength, then look at my relative position with competitors to figure out how to best make gains.

I also have used visualization techniques to great effect, visualizing in great detail what I am about to do. I have done this two ways, spending a few minutes an hour prior to the event, running through how I think the match or race is going to happen. The second way is in the event, where I need to visualize what I am resetting - often I think about a recent practice session - but always my focus is the immediate task at hand. Visualization is a whole topic by itself, so maybe I'll write about that in a later blog (drop me a note if you'd like me to).

A Final Note About Efficient Living

When faced with tight deadlines, demanding tasks, or unexpected challenges, the way we respond can determine our overall productivity and well-being. Learning to manage pressure effectively allows us to focus our energy on problem-solving relating to the task at hand. Practicing mindfulness, and maintaining a positive outlook can mean your focus on the task at hand is complete.

Live efficiently.

Bruce.