Two people are given identical painkillers. One is told that the painkiller has been proven to reduce pain for patients. The other is informed that it can increase pain in certain cases.
Guess who experiences a reduction in pain? Of course, it’s person number 1, while the unfortunate individual who’s told that it may increase pain is far more likely to find their problem does not go away.
And the same results are found when the tablet isn’t a painkiller of any sort – simply a coloured, non-medical pill.
The brain gets primed to expect a certain outcome and then reacts to make that expectation become a reality.
You’re most likely familiar with the placebo effect that the first person experiences; perhaps less so with the nocebo effect that the second person’s primed with.
Time after time, our brain directs responses in our body. Put simply, what we think drives how we feel, and how we feel drives how we behave.
This simple process is invaluable in helping leaders manage the overwhelm that causes too many sleepless nights followed by stressed-out days. It’s a super simple, and super effective, trick of the mind. Here’s how it works.
To manage the overwhelm, simply change what you think.
Rather than: ‘I’ll never get through this” think “I’ll cover the top five priorities.”
Instead of: ‘My inbox is overflowing’ think ‘I’ll action the 10% that I decide are most important and archive the rest.’
Replace: ‘This is impossible’ with ‘I’ll complete three key steps in the next half hour and then re-group to plan where next.’
This will help you manage the overwhelm for 3 key reasons:
(1) It avoids triggering your brain’s panic mode. Instead, you keep the calm, rational part of your brain in charge so you will find it easier to focus and get down to work.
(2) It gives you a sense of control which is essential if you are to operate with confidence and energy.
(3) It gives your brain something clear to focus on – ‘top five priorities’, 10% that I decide are important’, ‘three key steps.’ This helps your rational brain to drown out the noise, confusion and overload. There’s a specific number to focus on.
A word of caution. If the pressure you’re facing is pushing you into a constant state of extreme stress, or even near burnout, of course you need to take bigger actions. I’m going to look at those next week. But, changing your habitual thinking will make a huge difference to your ability to tackle the day-to-day pressures that can easily become overwhelming.
And a note to help you get the biggest benefit from this simple technique. You may have become so accustomed to thinking the thoughts that reinforce overwhelm that you find they push their way back in. So, be sure to combat them with the productive thought until this becomes your normal practice.
Give it a try and let me know how you get on – you’ve a whole world of control and productivity to gain and absolutely nothing to lose.
And, whatever you’re working on this week, always remember to observe yourself and others with interest and learning, not with criticism and judgement.