Leadership Mastery: Techniques to Overcome Performance Anxiety and Achieve Optimal Results

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Performance anxiety is a shared experience among athletes, akin to the challenges faced by leaders striving for excellence. 

Unmanaged anxiety can not only hinder performance but also impact mental and physical well-being, limiting one's ability to reach their full potential. 

In the realm of leadership, recognizing and addressing anxiety becomes crucial for sustained success. 

This blog explores 7 techniques inspired by athletic strategies to help leaders overcome anxiety and optimize their performance.

Understanding Leadership Anxiety:

Much like athletes experience different levels of anxiety before a competition, leaders may encounter stress in high-stakes situations. This anxiety can be viewed as either non-performance enhancing or performance enhancing, similar to the athlete's perspective. Here are 7 techniques for Influencing Leadership Anxiety State:

Technique #1 Active Language Integration:

  • Understand that anxiety is an unconscious action.

  • Use active language (Do, Doing, Did, Does) to recognize and take control of your feeling (e.g. I’m doing anxiety)

  • Transform negative thoughts into actionable statements, empowering yourself to choose how you want to feel e.g. instead of feeling passive in the situation ‘this meeting is making me do anxiety’ become action: ‘I’m doing anxiety around this meeting, what would I love to do instead and how can I achieve that?’

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Technique #2 Performance-Enhancing Language:

  • Embrace positive and productive self-talk to enhance leadership performance.

  • Your words create your reality: recognize the impact of words on thoughts, feelings, and experiences, they determine whether you win or lose

  • Replace negative phrases with powerful affirmations, fostering confidence and success.


Technique #3 Stop Unhelpful Thoughts:

  • Employ the thought-stopping technique to break unproductive thought patterns.

  • When you notice saying something unhelpful, pause and ask yourself if this thought is enhancing your performance/life; if not, use a firm and positive voice to say ‘stop.'

  • Redirect focus to thoughts that positively impact performance and your life

  • Keep repeating this process to train your brain in thinking in this new way


Technique #4 Dismantling Pressure:

  • Acknowledge that pressure is purely an internal experience created by thoughts, feelings and expectations.

  • Recognize that sporting events, meetings etc. hold no inherent pressure; it is self-created.

  • Focus on the present task, shifting from external pressures to internal performance goals. Examples:

    • A triathlete will switch from focusing on winning to swimming, cycling and running as fast as possible.

    • The CEO will switch from their yearly sales goal of 28 million NOK to creating the best adventures as possible for their customers.


Technique #5 Meditation for Leaders:

  • Incorporate meditation practices to reduce anxiety levels.

  • Utilize paid and free apps like Calm, Headspace, or Insight Timer for guided meditation.

  • Practice techniques such as Box Breathing to enhance focus and accelerate recovery.

Technique #6 Performance and Process-Based Goals:

  • Direct mental energy to elements within your influence.

  • Shift focus from external pressures to internal performance and process goals.

  • Emphasize actions that contribute to achieving performance goals.


Technique #7 Increase Self-Confidence:

  • Recognize the connection between self-confidence and reduced anxiety.

  • Create a mental cookie jar of past successes and achievements.

  • Pull out 'cookies' of evidence to boost confidence during challenging times.

Conclusion:

Leadership mastery involves navigating challenges, much like athletes overcoming competition anxiety. By adapting techniques from the athletic arena, leaders can address anxiety, enhance performance, and achieve optimal results.

Incorporate these techniques into your leadership journey and witness the transformation of anxiety into a catalyst for success.

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