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1-Page Summary of Performing Under Pressure

Studying Relationships

Psychologist John Gottman has spent his life studying relationships. Through the Gottman Institute, he and psychologist Julie Gottman teach couples how to deal with each other in pressure-filled situations. Couples who can manage that pressure together are more likely to stay together than those who cannot.

Pressure can affect the most important things in your life, such as your relationships with others and yourself. When you’re under pressure, it can make you feel like a failure or less confident. People want to be loved and accepted by their friends and family members. If they are constantly worried about what other people think of them, that can ruin their relationships with those people.

Even though some people are good at managing pressure, they don’t necessarily perform better when under pressure than not. When you’re under a lot of stress, it’s easy to forget about your strengths and weaknesses. You may feel that if you fail or do badly in an important situation, it will set you back in life. However, by remembering that everyone has their own unique talents and skills that make them great at what they do can help ease the tension and allow for greater success during stressful situations.

The author suggests that you draw on your confidence, optimism, tenacity and enthusiasm to succeed. You should practice under pressure so when the time comes for the actual event, it will be easier to handle. The word “enthusiasm” has Greek origins: en or “in” and theos or “god”. Having more enthusiasm means getting more involved in a task which can lead to better results.

In the past, people were more concerned about surviving than succeeding. Nowadays, a good interview can advance your career. If you have time to think of several ways to respond to a stressful situation, that’s great; however, if you’re in a hurry and need to do something important quickly, it’s better to know one method well rather than many methods poorly.

Differentiating Stress and Pressure

Early humans had to deal with a lot of stress. They had to fight animals, secure food and take care of children. That required a lot of work and effort, which produced stress in their lives.

When people are put under pressure, the ones who will survive and thrive are those who can handle it. The body responds to stress by preparing for excess demands that the stress creates. When you’re faced with a dangerous situation in nature, whether you evade it or fight it off, your life is at risk if you don’t succeed.

Although the world isn’t as dangerous today, people still feel pressure in their lives. This pressure can affect how well they perform in certain situations.

What Situations Create Pressure

The design of the human brain makes people pay more attention to matters they consider most important. Since you always have tasks that are significant, you will inevitably confront pressure.

You may feel nervous before a big event, but it’s not because of the event itself. It could be that you’re worrying about how to prepare for the big day and what might happen if things don’t go as planned. If you change your mindset and think positively, then you’ll perform better at the event.

There are certain situations in life that can cause stress and anxiety. They all have three things in common: first, they feel very important; second, you don’t know how it will turn out; third, you’re afraid of how others will judge your performance.

“Choking”

The word “choke” has been used since 1950 to describe a substandard performance. When you choke, you perform worse than your typical level of ability.