THIS WEEK’S TOPIC:  How to manage stress while building INFLUENCE  

We can’t be as influential, or have the impact we hope to have when we allow stress to overwhelm us. When not managed, it mushrooms and interferes with how we feel, how we relate to others, our problem-solving abilities, our creativity, and ultimately how INFLUENTIAL we can be. Yet, stress is all around us and is constant, especially these days. 

So what can we do?

Vitality isn’t a word we often think about when we think of how we manage or cope with stress, but learning to build vitality holds important benefits to living happier and healthier.  Turns out, the secret to tackling stress and building vitality may be less about looking inward, and more about looking outward and beyond ourselves.    

 

THIS WEEK’S GUEST:

Dr. Samantha Boardman is a clinical psychiatrist with a master’s degree in applied positive psychology. Her practice combines her medical training in psychiatry with her studies in the field of positive psychology. She helps clients and patients “find strength within stress,” and “wellness within illness.” She shares her straight-forward, practical, scientifically-backed philosophy and approach as the founder of PositivePerscription.com and in her terrific new book “Everyday Vitality: Turning Stress Into Strength.” She provides an empowering approach for understanding and managing stress, and living a happier, healthier life.  

 

KEY TOPICS:

 

CAREER PIVOT: Samantha recognized that what she learned in medical school wasn’t enough to effectively treat her patients. By embracing a field of study that is often discounted by traditional medicine, she broadened her perspective in a way that enables her to add more value to her patients and to see their problems differently. 

 

VITALITY: We talk about the connection between vitality and stress, and how to use the building blocks of vitality to combat stress. 

 

BE THE “UN YOU:” You may be thinking, “Wait, what?!” Everywhere I turn, I’m reminded to “be my authentic self.” Dr. Boardman cautions don’t let “being yourself” stand in the way of your personal growth. #GrowthMindset 

 

CONNECTION, CHALLENGING YOURSELF & CONTRIBUTING: These are the 3 C’s needed to build vitality, but they are also critical levers needed to building INFLUENCE. 

 

FOCUS YOUR GRATITUDE OUTWARD: Dr. Boardman suggests just being grateful, making gratitude lists, and posting #blessed #Grateful on social media is fine, but isn’t actually enough to build vitality. She suggests sharing more of your gratitude outwardly and directly with others. If you are grateful for someone, tell them, and tell them why. Don’t assume they already know how grateful you are. Even if they know, it’s always nice to hear. 

 

SET MENTAL CONTRAST or “WOOP” GOALS: Dr. Boardman describes a great exercise to close the “intention/action gap” through “mental contrasting.” One way to do this is by making a list of the words you would hope your child or colleague would use to describe you.  Next, make a list of the actual words they would use. Finally, make a list of the actions or steps you can take to close that gap between what you WISH FOR and WHAT IS. 

 

BEWARE “PRODUCTIVITY PORN” & “UPLIFT IMPOSTERS”: Dr. Boardman and I talk about “uplift imposters” and why too much focus on doing more, more, more might not be better, and how taking productivity to its extreme actually depletes us of vitality. 

 

STRESS IS PART OF LIFE: By finding ways that help us manage stress — and the emotion that often accompanies it, rather than avoiding the things that can cause it, we can better prepare ourselves to reframe, shift gears, move forward, and build more INFLUENCE.  

 

WHAT DID YOU THINK OF THE EPISODE?  Let me know!