What do you do if your emotional resilience is tested by looming deadlines?

1 Identify your triggers

Understanding what triggers your stress and anxiety is the first step to managing your emotional resilience. Everyone reacts differently to deadlines, based on their personality, work style, and coping skills. Common triggers include unrealistic or unclear expectations, lack of resources or support, conflicting or changing priorities, fear of failure or criticism, and procrastination or perfectionism. Once you identify your triggers, you can take action to address them. Communicating with your manager or colleagues to clarify project scope and expectations, seeking help and feedback when needed, prioritizing and planning tasks, and setting realistic goals are all ways to effectively manage stress and anxiety.

3 Balance your workload

The third step to managing your emotional resilience is to balance your workload. This means finding a way to complete your tasks without compromising your health and well-being. To do this, you should break down projects into smaller, manageable steps and track your progress and achievements. You can also delegate or outsource some of your tasks, if possible and appropriate, to free up time and energy. Additionally, you should learn to say no or negotiate when you are asked to take on more work than you can handle or when the deadlines are unrealistic or unfair. Establishing and maintaining healthy boundaries, such as setting regular working hours, taking breaks, and avoiding distractions is also important. Finally, rewarding yourself for your efforts and accomplishments with a snack, movie, or massage is a great way to stay motivated.

4 Seek support and feedback

Seeking support and feedback is the fourth step to managing emotional resilience. You don't have to face your deadlines alone, as you can benefit from the help and advice of others who can offer you different perspectives, insights, and solutions. Consider joining or creating a support group such as a peer network, mentorship program, or coaching service to share your challenges and successes with others. Additionally, ask for feedback from your manager, colleagues, or clients to improve performance, quality, and satisfaction. If you feel overwhelmed, depressed, or anxious, seek professional help like a therapist, counselor, or coach for expert guidance and intervention. Lastly, reach out to friends, family, or community for emotional, social, or practical support and some fun and relaxation.

5 Develop your skills and mindset

The fifth step to managing your emotional resilience is to develop your skills and mindset. This involves improving your abilities and attitudes to better manage deadlines. To do so, you can learn new skills such as time management, project management, problem-solving, or communication to increase your competence and confidence. Additionally, you should adopt a growth mindset, which encourages learning and improvement from challenges and feedback. You should also cultivate a positive attitude, focusing on the opportunities and benefits of your deadlines. Lastly, embrace change and uncertainty by being flexible and adaptable to the changing demands of your work environment.

6 Review and reflect

The sixth step to managing your emotional resilience is to review and reflect, which involves evaluating your performance and outcomes, and learning from your experience. Celebrate your achievements, no matter how big or small, and analyze your strengths and weaknesses. Additionally, seek feedback from others, recognize your challenges and mistakes, and plan for the future. Appreciate recognition and suggestions from others, see mistakes as opportunities for growth and learning, and set new goals and action steps for upcoming projects.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?