How can your anxiety fuel your productivity?
The Challenge
Consider two significant decisions you made recently and compare them on these criteria: 1) How difficult was this decision for you? 2) How much anxiety did you experience in coming to this decision? 3) Did your anxiety help or hinder you in making this decision?
Why do this?
Decisive people make well-informed, effective, and timely decisions, even when data are limited or solutions produce unpleasant consequences. The more difficult a decision is, the more likely you are to experience some anxiety around it.
What you experience as anxiety is your autonomic nervous system alerting you to possible threats and a need to act. Studies have shown that a moderate amount of anxiety can improve performance. Think about athletes psyching themselves up before a game. On the other hand, too much anxiety may hinder performance. Anxiety is a normal part of the human experience. Your goal is to use your anxiety to motivate you to act decisively.
What’s next?
Use this information to be aware of your anxiety levels over the next week. Take the opportunity to channel your anxiety into action. Reframe the anxious feeling as excitement.
