What do you do when…

·       The line outside your door with people with “pressing” issues rivals the women’s restroom line at intermission.

·       Your boss just added yet another area of responsibility and you’re already overworked.

·       Mr./Ms. “Snarley” blames you once again for something that is not in your control?

Do you:

·       Blurt out your rage?

·       Stutter and stammer because you’re so upset?

·       Vow to quit the business and become a librarian?

It’s during pressurized moments like these, when you need to summon your highest level Leadership Communications. You know you are an intelligent person, so during those high pressure times, you want to avoid reacting in ways that may embarrass you later.

How Do You Get Control?

It was during a tough time in my life that I started searching for ways to gain mental and emotional control. Through studying a combination of medical, psychological and behavioral research, I learned practical actions which take no more than 10-60 seconds to gain greater control over your mind and faculties when you are under fire. Most of them are easy to do, they’re socially acceptable, and no one will even notice that you are doing them!

Prepare…in New Ways

No doubt about it. As a manager you have that “Prepare” thing down pat. But what I’m talking about is a different kind of preparation. Think about those times when you know you’ll be in a challenging situation with Mr./Ms. “Snarley.” You know that person who is critical of anyone, anytime, anywhere. Here’s a way to switch on your empathic understanding and positive solution focus. (Now before you read on, brace yourself for something you may not want to believe.) As you are walking down the hall on the way to the meeting – Sing, Hum or Whistle! That’s right -- at the very moment when you want to be obsessing about how ridiculous or annoying that person is, switch your focus to your favorite upbeat song. Then sing, hum or whistle it.

Technically, what this does is switch the chemicals in your body to more endorphin-like chemicals that bring out your positive focus and switch on your empathic understanding. That means you’re increasing your ability to understand not only what they are saying, but what they really want (sometimes, it’s just attention).

Drink!

Yes, drinking can help you communicate more clearly. Notice I didn’t say what to drink. I’ll get to that in a minute. Have you ever noticed that when people get upset, their voices get strained and higher pitched? When we are nervous our muscles tighten up.  Vocal cords are muscles too, so they get the same message to constrict. Also, some people find themselves clearing their throat a lot and choking/coughing. For many people, phlegm appears in their throat when they are nervous. That’s why their voice starts to break-up and they start choking or coughing.

When you know a tense meeting or conversation is coming up, try drinking this magic potion: hot water with a squeeze of lemon. It’s like hot lemonade. The warmth of the hot water relaxes your vocal cords, so you’ll have a solid, resonating voice. The lemon clears your throat of phlegm. Instantly you sound confident and in control!

Small Actions = Big Results

By monitoring people who are very effective at keeping their cool while under fire, we have learned that it’s the many little things they do during the day that make the difference. The ideas presented here are only a few of the many quick, practical techniques you can use to help you gain control of your mind on a moment’s notice during high-pressure situations. A disaster can be either created or prevented in a moment’s time. Don’t let other people or situations control you. Take control, by using these Leadership Communications Under Fire techniques. Then email me to share how it went or to ask for further guidance at Janelle@DynamicPerformance.com.

Janelle Brittain, MBA, CSP, is CEO & President of Dynamic Performance Institute, LLC and Dynamic Solutions Group., companies that help leadership and teams of organizations grow to their highest dynamic performance.  Her most recent books are “Star Team Dynamics: 12 Lessons Learned from Experienced Team Builders” and “How to Say It: Performance Reviews, Phrases and Strategies for Painless and Productive Performance Reviews.” To learn more, visit www.DynamicPerformance.com and WWW.DynamicSolutionsGp.com . To hear concrete advice or have your business questions answered, go to Janelle’s on-line audio shows at: https://thewinonline.com/shows/dynamic-performance-business-coach-bring-your-work-issues-janelle