Here’s my checklist for when stress hits

Hi there,

A week back, I was having a stressful time of it. There was a lot going on for the book and for my new startup Rise. Plus moving the office. A baby with an ear infection. You know that feeling when everything hits at once? How in the world can I take care of it all?!

Here’s my checklist for putting out fires, when they seem to be springing up all around you:

• Jot down what’s causing you stress. Certain projects? Specific tasks? Or maybe something’s unclear?

• Get everything out of your head. For each project, note down what’s not yet on paper. What’s still unclear? Who do I still need to speak to? What ideas are out there? 

• Rearrange your schedule. Your calendar is sacred, but the work you have planned is not. Reorganize your week. It may seem obvious, but free up as much time as you can for the biggest stressors. Remember: the best remedy for stress is progress. A chaotic project gets clearer by the minute once you stop mulling it over and start carrying out the next steps.

• Break with destructive thoughts. They won’t get you anywhere. It’s easy to get a negative thought playing on repeat. “What if X doesn’t work? I’d be humiliated.” Try writing down those thoughts that get stuck in your head, and add what would actually happen in that case. More than likely, the world keeps on turning, most people have no idea that your plans didn’t pan out, and you’re sure to come up with something new. That can help put things in perspective and get you unstuck.

• Cope now, look back on it later. Make a note of this stressful period somewhere in your journal or notetaking app. That way you’ll encounter it again when looking back over the quarter or reflecting on your year, and you can draw conclusions about the stress you experienced. Was the stress excessive, in hindsight? Even unnecessary? Were there things you could have anticipated or responded to earlier? Looking back after getting some distance can prove invaluable. Often you’ll see that things weren’t as bad as you feared. And once you know that, you can bring it to bear in the heat of the moment, to keep your cool.

This checklist helped me focus, do first things first, and find some peace of mind—despite the hectic situation I found myself in.

Hope it helps you, too. 

Have a good week, 

Rick

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