How to Thrive in a Stressful Environment (Without Burning Out)

Let’s be real: stress isn’t optional anymore. Our pace is faster. Expectations are higher. And calm? That’s a luxury, not a guarantee.

But here’s the good news: thriving in a high-pressure environment isn’t about eliminating stress. It’s about learning how to thrive in it.

Let’s break down three key ways to thrive when everything feels like it’s on fire.

Don’t Panicked and Don’t Spiral

Stress doesn’t just exhaust us it likes to follow us around like a pet.

When we don’t take care of ourselves we can run in a constant fight or flight response.  Running in this state for long periods of time will cause us to be on edge, not sleep well, and end up getting sick. 

I have had many times where I ran in this state for far too long and each time I have had consequences like enjoying the fun of shingles under the age of 50.  That’s right shingles doesn’t care what age we are.  I was focused on a deadline and trying to win a large 100 million dollar project.  I was up at night during spring break working on presentations, pushing teams for information, and preparing for leadership meetings.

I won the project and got the pat on the back and then a week later had the experience of a lifetime with all the fun that shingles can be. 

I was worried about what could happen instead of being present with my family and enjoying quality time.  I was worn out and couldn’t focus. 

Then the sharp pains and blisters from shingles set in.  I had to learn how to relax and learn how to focus on the controllables instead of what ifs.  I started box breathing during the painful times to lower my heart rate and help me focus.  I had to pause and breathe when stress was high.  This kept me from spiraling while staying focused on tasks at hand.

Control Our Controllables

We can’t control our customer’s attitudes when our plants missed their shipments.  We can’t control a quality spill, and we can’t control what our elected government officials decide is a fair tariff impact.

What we can control is our attitude and how we show up.  How we attack each task with focus and sometimes it is even just focusing on one foot in front of the other.  Nothing more sometimes.  But we have to take control of what we can control and not worry about other things.  Maybe it’s just finding the three things we can do today that will make us feel successful for that day. 

I start each day doing some reading, affirmations, and figuring out three things that if I get done today, will help me feel like I had a success.  Some days its writing blog posts, doing video edits, making cold calls, or practicing a story for my keynote.

Other days it is taking a nap during a busy day, stretching instead of workouts, and taking a walk to clear my head. 

What we can control is us and not others or outcomes.

Stress isn’t all bad. There are actually good stresses and yes there are bad stresses. We won’t get into each of these, but stress does make us sharper. When under stress we can focus on the task at hand and we can narrow in on the details that will make the project move forward instead of the stress.

When castings are made they is heat, pressure, and time. To make castings all three have to work together and when they do a new product is formed. A trough product that can be used to move a large truck forward down the road. Sometimes we need this stress to make us stronger.

Using stress to help us focus and learn to not tailspin when we are stressed will help us to succeed with higher levels of success.

This won’t happen overnight, but in time we can learn to harness stress to help us to do better and thrive in stressful environments.

Master the Art of Influence: Build Trust, Drive Sales, and Lead Effectively

Are you ready to become the brand of choice for top customers and employees? Kevin Sidebottom—keynote speaker, trainer, and author—shares proven strategies to elevate your sales success and leadership impact.

In this blog, Kevin reveals why influence is the ultimate currency in building lasting relationships. Learn how to:
✅ Motivate customers to stay loyal to your brand
✅ Build trust and engagement with your team
✅ Transform your approach to leadership and sales

With decades of experience studying why people buy and how to inspire loyalty, Kevin equips sales professionals and leaders to deliver exceptional value, ensuring customers return again and again.

Featured Links to Grow Your Influence:

Winning With Others:  https://www.kevinsidebottom.com/stopgambling

Kevin’s website: https://www.kevinsidebottom.com

Kevin’s email: kevin@kevinsidebottom.com

The Sales Process Uncovered Membership Page

https://www.kevinsidebottom.com/pricing-page

The Sales Process Uncovered Book

https://www.amazon.com/Sales-Process-Uncovered-Success-Influence/dp/0578421518/ref=sr_1_1?crid=8XUM4QL2RC6M&keywords=the+sales+process+uncovered&qid=1673274567&sprefix=the+sales+process+uncovered%2Caps%2C90&sr=8-1

Why You Need The Three F's

When I am on stage speaking, I bring the audience in to where I began in sales.  I was working for a 6-foot 5-inch ex-Navy Seal.  He was a successful driven business leader.  He was intense and was always moving forward.  He also flipped my thought process upside down.

Growing up in my blue-collar family it was always pressed to do my best and do it perfect.  I am also a “one” on the Enneagram so I naturally trying to make things better and as close to perfect as possible.  I was devastated when I got into college and my best would however only generate B’s and C’s.  Highschool was easy to obtain A’s, but college was a whole different ball game.

I was failing to get A’s and I was pissed off and angry throughout college.  I graduated with an electrical engineering degree and had a great job right out of college, but I always looked back that I was not perfect in college.  It left a feeling that I was not good enough back then.

In reality no one is totally perfect.  We all have flaws.  No one can do everything perfect the first time either.  What we do is Fail Forward Fast.  Fail Forward Fast is a phrase that navy seal operators use quite often in training.

Navy seals as I was taught by my mentor are okay with set-backs.  Fail Forward Fast works like this.  Apply action -> review -> apply action for a constant loop for improvement of whatever the situation is.  Failure is not about making a mistake; failure is giving up. 

It’s okay to have a set back and learn from it so that when you are attacking the same activity the next time you move through it more efficiently.  The cool part is that the action does not have to be a massive game changer.  It is small incremental adjustments as you go through the loop.  

Another benefit from this small action is that doubt is eliminated through action.  Figuring out the next small step will keep doubt from tackling us from behind and stopping us from moving forward in our process.  How awesome is that!  A small step of action puts doubt on its butt and allows us to move forward.

Do you remember riding a bike without training wheels for the first time?  Most of us as children would fall, get back on the bike and moved a little farther, fall again, get back on the bike and moved farther and farther each time until we were riding the bike without assistance from anyone.  It took a progression and learning how to balance while pedaling and occasionally stopping before running into something.  It is rare for someone to just jump on a bike for the first time and get it perfect. 

I love the Fail Forward Fast because when I am working on a project and the “Have to be perfect” phase pops in my head, and I am able to remind myself that it is okay.  Sometimes I also find out that the desired outcome that I had was not the one I needed to be shooting for.  I am able to pivot towards the better desired outcome instead of coming to the end of the experience and learning that I am nowhere near where I truly need to be.

Fail Forward Fast is essential in all growth and I have applied it to my life so that I can keep going when tough times happen.  Sometimes we just need to focus on one small step at a time to keep moving forward instead of looking at the long path that is ahead of us. 

I hope this blog is helpful to you.  If it is, please leave a comment below of how this or another blog post has helped you!

Have a great week!

“Businesses wonder why it is still hard to be thought of as the brand of choice with customers.  How can our business make more profitable transactions and stay out of the commodity battle with low profits?  I equip your sales team to walk with the customer through the five buying decisions, and in the correct order to generate explosive revenues with greater profits!”

www.kevinsidebottom.com

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1lWIVasmkFsoYL4h0AqIZgH6LC3qaw_gI/view?usp=sharing – client profile sheet

https://www.amazon.com/Sales-Process-Uncovered-Success-Influence/dp/0578421518 - Book

https://kevinsidebottom.kartra.com/page/5AF12 - Sales Process Uncovered Online Training

https://kevinsidebottom.kartra.com/page/68N10 - Trustworthy Online Training