STRESS MANAGEMENT: STRESS

TOLERANCE AND IMPULSE

CONTROL

Stress Tolerance
Managing Your Stress

Emotional Skills measured on the EQ-i

INTRAPERSONAL

Self-regard
Emotional self-awareness
Assertiveness
Independence
Self-actualization

INTERPERSONAL

Empathy
Social responsibility
Interpersonal relationship

ADAPTABILITY

STRESS
MANAGEMENT
Stress tolerance

Reality testing
Flexibility
Problem solving

Impulse control

GENERAL MOOD

Optimism
Happiness

Stress Tolerance
Ability to withstand adverse events and
stressful situations by....
Minimizing physical or emotional
symptoms
Actively and positively coping with stress
Staying relaxed and composed
Calmly facing difficulties without losing
yourself to strong emotions or anxiety

Stress Tolerance
TOO High
Too relaxed, lack of urgency
Never moving forward or reaching decisions
Not aware of overload
TOO Low
Gives up easily
Falls apart during crises
Easily frustrated

Some Common Stressors

Environmental

Physiological

such as illness or injuries

Psychological

such as noise or crowds

such as negative self-talk or perfectionism

Social Stressors

such as financial problems or losing a loved

one

~ Strategies for Success ~ The Lawrence Kinlin School of Business ~

Typical Causes of Stress at Work

Source: http://www.businessballs.com/stressmanagement.htm

Bullying/harassment (by coworkers,

management, etc.)
Powerlessness determining one's own
responsibilities
Continuous unreasonable performance demands
Lack of effective communication and conflict
resolution
Lack of job security
Long working hours (lack of personal time)
office politics and conflict among staff
Lack of reward for given responsibility
Disruption of life-balance (diet, exercise, sleep
rest,
play,~family-time,
~ and
Strategies
for Success
The Lawrence Kinlinetc.)
School of Business ~

Emotional Symptoms of Stress

Irritability
Depression
Anger
Fear
Anxiety
Feeling overwhelmed
Mood swings

Cognitive Symptoms of Stress

Forgetfulness
Unwanted or
repetitive thoughts
Difficulty
concentrating
Scattered thoughts
Lack of focus

Stress and the Brain

What happens in your brain?

brain identifies danger; sends nerve

signals down spinal cord to
adrenal glands release of adrenaline
This release results in increased sugar
in blood, heart rate and blood pressure
(plus many other symptoms)
So how does this adrenaline release
happen?

~ Strategies for Success ~ The Lawrence Kinlin School of Business ~

Impulse Control
Putting Emotions in Check

Emotional Skills measured on the EQ-i

INTRAPERSONAL

Self-regard
Emotional self-awareness
Assertiveness
Independence
Self-actualization

ADAPTABILITY

Reality testing
Flexibility
Problem solving

STRESS
MANAGEMENT

INTERPERSONAL

Stress tolerance

Empathy
Social responsibility
Interpersonal relationship

Impulse control

GENERAL MOOD

Optimism
Happiness

Impulse Control
Ability to resist/delay temptation
to act
Capacity to identify and manage
initial impulses
Poor impulse control can result in
low frustration tolerance,
impulsiveness, loss of self-control
as well as explosive and
unpredictable behaviour

Impulse Control
TOO High
Lack of spontaneity/too laid
back
Not reacting quickly
enough/not moving forward

TOO Low
Wants instant gratification
Easily distracted/easily hooked
on something
Acts without thinking

Impulse Control Identified Early

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6EjJsPylEOY

The marshmallow experiment is a

famous test conducted by Walter
Mischel at Stanford University.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xNvvL9j_SIs

Professor Philip Zimbardo describes the

affects of present and future orientation
in children.

~ Strategies for Success ~ The Lawrence Kinlin School of Business ~

The Brain and Impulse Control

Difficulty learning to control responses in

childhood can lead to behavioral problems
which continue into adulthood
Impulsivity component in many disorders
(addictions, ADHD, obsessive compulsive
disorder)
Identifying the brain region that controls
impulsivity helps in diagnosis /treatment of
such conditions.

Findings were recently published in The Journal of Neuroscience.

~ Strategies for Success ~ The Lawrence Kinlin School of Business ~

In Class Activity:
In groups of 3-4, review the
provided case and answer the
questions that follow it.