A New Way to Cope With Stress

The last few years have seen a significant increase in the number of employees experiencing high levels of stress and being at risk of burnout. We know that this is an issue across all industries and genders; however, research also shows that the impact on women is particularly severe. Our recent research, The Voice of Women At Work 2023, found that 81 percent of women have experienced increased levels of stress in the past 18 months, and 78 percent have felt burnt out. It’s vital that we find new ways to cope with stress.

Research shows that a quarter of employees view their jobs as the number-one stressor in their lives. Think about your own life and work for a moment. If you wrote down the top 10 things that stress you on an everyday basis and how you felt about them, what would your list look like? What would be at the top of your list? Would it be your job, your family, or something else that’s going on in your life right now?

We know that the prevalent thought around stress is how damaging it is for us and for our health. But what if that wasn’t true? What if the stress was something that could work in your favor?

Because the truth, as health psychologist Kelly McGonigal found in her research, is that the harmful effects of stress on your health are not inevitable. How you think and how you act can transform your experience of stress and the way you cope with it. When you change your mind about stress, you can change your body’s response to stress.

There have been some fascinating studies that show how important your mindset is when it comes to stress. One such study tracked 30,000 adults for eight years and asked them, “How much stress have you experienced in the last year?” and “Do you believe that stress is harmful for your health?” The study then used public death records to find out who amongst these adults died, and what they found was quite remarkable.

People who experienced a lot of stress in the previous year had a 43 percent increased risk of dying, but that was only true for the people who also believed that stress was harmful to their health. People who experienced a lot of stress but did not view stress as harmful were no more likely to die. In fact, they had the lowest risk of dying of anyone in the study, including people who had relatively little stress. The researchers estimated that over the eight years they were tracking deaths, 182,000 people died prematurely, not from stress, but from the belief that stress was bad for them.

Normally, we interpret physical changes during the stress response as anxiety or signs that we aren’t coping very well with the pressure. But if you view these instead as signs that your body is preparing you to meet a challenge, you can completely change the health outcomes.

The idea is to change your mindset from a “stress is harmful” one to a “stress is enhancing” one.

Mindset 1: Stress Is Harmful.

• Experiencing stress depletes my health and vitality.
• Experiencing stress debilitates my performance and productivity.
• Experiencing stress inhibits my learning and growth.
• The effects of stress are negative and should be avoided.

Mindset 2: Stress Is Enhancing.

• Experiencing stress enhances my performance and productivity.
• Experiencing stress improves my health and vitality.
• Experiencing stress facilitates my learning and growth.
• The effects of stress are positive and should be utilized.

Take a moment and reflect on this. The way most people are raised—and society in general—would arguably put most of us in mindset number one, with the view that stress is harmful.

But when you choose to view your stress response as helpful, you create the biology of courage. And when you choose to connect with others under stress, you can create resilience.

Here Are Some Tips for How You Can Reframe Stress for Success and Change Your Stress Mindset:

• Acknowledge stress when you experience it.
• Welcome the stress by recognizing that it’s a response to something you care about.
• Try to make use of the energy that stress gives you instead of wasting that energy trying to manage your stress.
• What strengths can you draw upon to respond in the way you want?
• How can you connect with and care for others to increase your stress resilience?

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Tips for Leaders: Helping Women Cope With Stress

• Create a Supportive Environment. Foster an open and empathetic workplace culture where women feel comfortable discussing their stressors and seeking help without fear of judgment.
• Schedule Regular Check-ins. Meet one-on-one to discuss workload, concerns, and well-being. These conversations show that you care about their holistic success.
• Recognize Their Achievements. Regularly acknowledge and celebrate women’s achievements and contributions to the team. Positive reinforcement boosts confidence and reduces stress.
• Provide Clear Expectations. Set clear and achievable goals for tasks and projects. Ambiguity can contribute to stress, so clarity helps women understand their roles and responsibilities.
• Offer Professional Development. Provide opportunities for women’s leadership development, such as the Women Rising program, which can give women access to tools and strategies to create intentional well-being and manage their stress by reframing their stress mindset and setting effective boundaries.
• Lead by Example. Demonstrate your own positive mindset that stress is enhancing and model healthy stress-management techniques. Show how taking breaks, delegating tasks, and seeking support are vital strategies.