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Coauthor Emotional Intelligence 2.0 & President at TalentSmart

The ability to manage your emotions and remain calm under pressure has a direct link to your performance. TalentSmart has conducted research with more than a million people, and we've found that 90% of top performers are skilled at managing their emotions in times of stress in order to remain calm and in control.

While I've run across numerous effective strategies that successful people employ when faced with stress, what follows are ten of the best. Some of these strategies may seem obvious, but the real challenge lies in recognising when you need to use them and having the wherewithal to actually do so in spite of your stress.

1. They Appreciate What They Have

Taking time to contemplate what you're grateful for isn't merely the right thing to do. It also improves your mood, because it reduces the stress hormone cortisol by 23%. Research conducted at the University of California, Davis found that people who worked daily to cultivate an attitude of gratitude experienced improved mood, energy, and physical well-being.

2. They Avoid Asking What If?

What if? statements throw fuel on the fire of stress and worry. The more time you spend worrying about the possibilities, the less time you'll spend focusing on taking action that will calm you down and keep your stress under control.

3. They Stay Positive

Positive thoughts help make stress intermittent by focusing your brain's attention onto something that is completely stress-free. You have to give your wandering brain a little help by consciously selecting something positive to think about. In these moments, think about your day and identify one positive thing that happened, no matter how small.

4. They Disconnect

Given the importance of keeping stress intermittent, it's easy to see how taking regular time off the grid can help keep your stress under control. Choose blocks of time where you cut the cord and go offline.

5. They Limit Their Caffeine Intake

Drinking caffeine triggers the release of adrenaline. This is great when a bear is chasing you, but not so great when you're responding to a curt email.

6. They Sleep

Stressful projects often make you feel as if you have no time to sleep, but taking the time to get a decent night's sleep is often the one thing keeping you from getting things under control.

7. They Squash Negative Self-Talk

A big step in managing stress involves stopping negative self-talk in its tracks. Most of our negative thoughts are just that thoughts, not facts. When you find yourself believing the negative and pessimistic things your inner voice says, it's time to stop and write them down.

You can bet that your statements aren't true any time you use words like never, worst, ever, etc. If your statements still look like facts once they're on paper, take them to a friend or colleague you trust and see if he or she agrees with you. Then the truth will surely come out.

8. They Reframe Their Perspective

Before you spend too much time dwelling on something, take a minute to put the situation in perspective. If you're thinking in broad, sweeping statements such as Everything is going wrong or Nothing will work out, then you need to reframe the situation. A great way to correct this unproductive thought pattern is to list the specific things that actually are going wrong or not working out. Most likely you will come up with just some things not everything and the scope of these stressors will look much more limited than it initially appeared.

9. They Breathe

The easiest way to make stress intermittent lies in something that you have to do everyday anyway: breathing. The practice of being in the moment with your breathing will begin to train your brain to focus solely on the task at hand and get the stress monkey off your back. When you're feeling stressed, take a couple of minutes to focus on your breathing. Close the door, put away all other distractions, and just sit in a chair and breathe.

10. They Use Their Support System

It's tempting, yet entirely ineffective, to attempt tackling everything by yourself. To be calm and productive, you need to recognise your weaknesses and ask for help when you need it.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Travis Bradberry, Ph.D.

Dr. Travis Bradberry is the award-winning co-author of the #1 bestselling book, Emotional Intelligence 2.0, and the cofounder of TalentSmart, the world's leading provider of emotional intelligence tests, emotional intelligence training, and emotional intelligence certification.