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Break the Loop – Stop Letting Triggers Run You
Topics Covered:
- How emotional triggers hijack your brain
- The neurobiology of fight, flight, freeze (and fawn)
- The “loop” cycle and how to recognize it
- Claire’s Triple S Method: Scan, Shrink, Shift
- Why calm is not the goal—command is
- The science of self-regulation in high-stakes leadership
- Why mental fitness rewires your team as much as yourself
- How to interrupt default patterns and rewire your neural circuits
Timestamps:
00:00 – The real reason you feel stuck in the same loop
01:00 – Claire’s story: being cut off in a room full of senior leaders
03:00 – Why your brain goes offline during emotional hijacks
04:30 – What the loop looks like: Trigger → Reaction → Rumination
05:00 – Step 1: Scan
06:30 – Step 2: Shrink (and what your vagus nerve has to do with it)
08:00 – Step 3: Shift
10:30 – How Claire applies this in real time
13:00 – The leadership myth about always being calm
14:00 – The real goal: recovery time, not perfection
15:30 – Training your brain like a muscle
17:00 – Practical examples to train your command muscle
18:00 – Mental fitness explained: why it matters for real leaders
20:00 – Join the Mental Fitness Masterclass
21:00 – Final thoughts: your trigger doesn’t define you—your response does
What you’ll learn:
- Why your brain goes offline when you're triggered—and how to bring it back
- What the “loop” really is and how to break it
- How physical cues like jaw tension or sweaty palms are not random
- What most people get wrong about meditation, composure, and leadership
- The practical tool that builds mental muscle daily (hint: it’s not a journal)
Mentioned in this episode:
- Claire’s Triple S Method → Scan, Shrink, Shift — a neuroscience-based way to interrupt emotional loops and reclaim command
- Mental Fitness Masterclass → https://go.clairehayek.com/mental-fitness-masterclass
- Leadership Insight: Calm isn’t the goal—command is.
- Brain Science Breakdown: Why your prefrontal cortex goes offline under pressure
- Listener Challenge: Notice one loop you’ve repeated this week—and try using “Scan” to name what you’re feeling in the moment
Follow Claire on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/clairehayek/
🎓 Want to train your brain for resilience and high performance?
Join Claire’s free Mental Fitness Masterclass here:👉 https://go.clairehayek.com/mental-fitness-masterclass
📩 For free resources, upcoming masterclasses, or to join our next live webinar—click here:👉 https://linktr.ee/clairehayek
📢 Subscribe to The NeuroLeadership Edge Podcast for brain-based strategies to lead with clarity, courage, and impact.
The NeuroLeadership Edge Podcast is produced by Claire Hayek. All opinions are those of the host and guests. For more leadership resources, visit www.mspteambuilding.com.
View all episodes
By Claire HayekTopics Covered:
- How emotional triggers hijack your brain
- The neurobiology of fight, flight, freeze (and fawn)
- The “loop” cycle and how to recognize it
- Claire’s Triple S Method: Scan, Shrink, Shift
- Why calm is not the goal—command is
- The science of self-regulation in high-stakes leadership
- Why mental fitness rewires your team as much as yourself
- How to interrupt default patterns and rewire your neural circuits
Timestamps:
00:00 – The real reason you feel stuck in the same loop
01:00 – Claire’s story: being cut off in a room full of senior leaders
03:00 – Why your brain goes offline during emotional hijacks
04:30 – What the loop looks like: Trigger → Reaction → Rumination
05:00 – Step 1: Scan
06:30 – Step 2: Shrink (and what your vagus nerve has to do with it)
08:00 – Step 3: Shift
10:30 – How Claire applies this in real time
13:00 – The leadership myth about always being calm
14:00 – The real goal: recovery time, not perfection
15:30 – Training your brain like a muscle
17:00 – Practical examples to train your command muscle
18:00 – Mental fitness explained: why it matters for real leaders
20:00 – Join the Mental Fitness Masterclass
21:00 – Final thoughts: your trigger doesn’t define you—your response does
What you’ll learn:
- Why your brain goes offline when you're triggered—and how to bring it back
- What the “loop” really is and how to break it
- How physical cues like jaw tension or sweaty palms are not random
- What most people get wrong about meditation, composure, and leadership
- The practical tool that builds mental muscle daily (hint: it’s not a journal)
Mentioned in this episode:
- Claire’s Triple S Method → Scan, Shrink, Shift — a neuroscience-based way to interrupt emotional loops and reclaim command
- Mental Fitness Masterclass → https://go.clairehayek.com/mental-fitness-masterclass
- Leadership Insight: Calm isn’t the goal—command is.
- Brain Science Breakdown: Why your prefrontal cortex goes offline under pressure
- Listener Challenge: Notice one loop you’ve repeated this week—and try using “Scan” to name what you’re feeling in the moment
Follow Claire on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/clairehayek/
🎓 Want to train your brain for resilience and high performance?
Join Claire’s free Mental Fitness Masterclass here:👉 https://go.clairehayek.com/mental-fitness-masterclass
📩 For free resources, upcoming masterclasses, or to join our next live webinar—click here:👉 https://linktr.ee/clairehayek
📢 Subscribe to The NeuroLeadership Edge Podcast for brain-based strategies to lead with clarity, courage, and impact.
The NeuroLeadership Edge Podcast is produced by Claire Hayek. All opinions are those of the host and guests. For more leadership resources, visit www.mspteambuilding.com.