What Creates Stress?
We’ve all felt it. The restless mind before a meeting. The tight chest when deadlines loom. The lingering fatigue even after a “productive” day.
But stress isn’t always about the situation.
It’s about how we relate to the situation.
At Leadology, we blend timeless ancient wisdom with neuroscience to help you decode what’s really causing stress; so you can lead life with calm, clarity, and purpose, even in high-pressure environments.
Stress Is Not the Workload, It’s Our Inner Wiring
Take Lucy, a high-performing manager. Her responsibilities didn’t change but her reactions did. She began avoiding decisions, snapping at colleagues, and losing confidence.
This wasn’t burnout from overwork. It was stress from being disconnected; from herself, from the present, and from her power.
And this is more common than we admit.
Research from Harvard and Stanford attributes over 120,000 deaths annually in the U.S. to workplace stress; underscoring it as a serious health risk, not just a leadership challenge.
In New Zealand, while stress-related death data is limited, the impact is still staggering. According to research by the NZ Institute of Economic Research and WorkSafe NZ, work-related stress and poor mental health cost the country over $1.5 billion annually in lost productivity, absenteeism, and disengagement.
The ripple effect? Fatigue, low morale, high turnover and cultures where people survive, rather than thrive.
So, What Actually Creates Stress?
It’s not just the workload, it’s the mental lens through which we experience it.
From neuroscience to Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras, the consensus is clear:
Stress is not out there. It arises within.
Here are 5 hidden drivers of stress:
1. Mental Resistance: Wishing things were different instead of accepting what is.
2. Over-Identification: Defining your worth by your role, output, or title.
3. Lack of Recovery: Operating in ‘always-on’ mode without space to breathe.
4. Fear of Judgment or Failure: Often masked as perfectionism.
5. Disconnection from the Present: Lost in past regrets or future worries.
“The cause of distress is set concepts in the mind that things should be a certain way.”
– Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
What Happens When Stress Goes Unchecked?
Stress isn’t just a personal issue, it shapes cultures, stifles innovation, and clouds decisions.
From a Leadology perspective, prolonged stress signals a breakdown in one or more of these leadership dimensions:
Self Mastery: Are you managing your thoughts and emotions, or are they managing you?
Social Mastery: Are you showing up with empathy and awareness under pressure?
Results Mastery: Are you taking aligned action or just reacting?
Three Leadology Tools to Reset Today
You don’t need a full overhaul to reduce stress. Start with these:
1. The 90-Second Reset
When triggered, pause.
🔹 Close your eyes, breathe slowly for 90 seconds.
🔹 Let the emotional wave pass without feeding it thoughts.
🔹 Then act with clarity.
✅ You reclaim control by activating your prefrontal cortex - the brain’s calm decision-maker.
2. The End-of-Day Clarity Check
Before signing off:
🔹 List your top 3 unresolved issues.
🔹 Label each: actionable / mental clutter.
🔹 Set a conscious intention for tomorrow.
✅ This clears your internal dashboard, boosting sleep and reducing mental residue.
3. Reflect on the Root Cause
Ask yourself:
🔹 What story am I telling myself about this pressure?
🔹 Is it absolutely true - or am I amplifying it through fear or identity?
🔹 What’s one shift I can make in mindset or action?
✅ This builds emotional intelligence and creates space between stimulus and response.
From Reaction to Reflection
Stress is not a sign of success; it’s a signal to pause, reset, and realign.
When you lead life from presence rather than pressure, you don’t just reduce stress; you unlock strength, clarity, and sustainable performance.
If you’ve been feeling the pressure lately, take this as a nudge to turn inward.
Explore Svadhyaya - the art of self-reflection to reconnect with your clarity, values, and inner calm.
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