Under Pressure

How you can build up resilience and keep burnout at bay.

Given at The Live Coders Conference in April 2020. I gave earlier versions of this talk at DrupalCon 2019 and at Drupal Business Days in 2017.

Transcript

1. <under pressure> How to build up resilience and keep burnout at bay Jochen Lillich [FullStackLive]
3. About me • Jochen Lillich / @geewiz • Founder & CTO freistil IT Ltd • freistilbox.com • married, 2 children • ❤ custom mechanical keyboards • twitch.tv/fullstacklive HostingPeaceOfMind .com
4. What resilience is not
5. The Core Elements of Resilience PURPOSE Positive Realism Relationships Self-management Self-awareness Determination
6. Burnout
7. "I'm way behind, but just can't seem to get things done..."
8. "My back is in knots; it's really killing me."
9. "How am I coming down with another cold?!"
10. "I just don't care anymore."
11. "There's no way out of this mess."
12. Challenge Pressure Stress Distress
13. Challenge • bad sleep • easy to get emotional • difficulty focusing • low energy • impatience, frustration
14. Challenge • Reduce workload, delegate • Relax • Develop a sleep routine • Take more breaks • Seek out people that help you recharge and get a different perspective • Eat healthy and be physically active
15. Pressure • Physical: Headaches, series of colds, aches in joints, excessive tiredness, insomnia, skin eruptions that stay • Emotional: Moodiness, intolerance, anger, irrational reactions • Mental: Forgetfulness, unusual mistakes, incomplete tasks, loss of concentration, demotivation, loss of confidence
19. Stress • headaches ➡ migraine • colds ➡ influenza/bronchitis • permanent backaches • mood swings, irritation and frustration ➡ anger • unsociability/withdrawal
 • continuous tiredness • forgetfulness ➡ major errors and poor decisions • sadness ➡ feeling depressed • lowered self-esteem
20. Distress • pneumonia • heart issues • insomnia • depression • eating disorders • antisocial behaviour
21. Purpose
22. Bruce Hoverd “The stronger your sense of purpose, the better equipped you are to handle challenges and setbacks and to recover from them.”
23. Relationships
24. Ben Stein “Personal relationships are the fertile soil from which all advancement, all success, all achievement in real life grows.”
25. Positive realism
26. Positive realism Believe that anything can happen. Know that it often doesn't.
27. Determination
28. Determination • Be determined, yet remain open-minded. • Let the solution, not the challenge, dominate your thoughts.
29. Self-awareness
30. S.T.O.P. • Stop... • Take a breath... • Observe... • Proceed.
31. Self-management
32. Self-management • Release pressure • Take action • Change your mindset
33. Release pressure
34. Pressure valves • Express your feelings strongly • Take vigorous exercise • Use therapeutic help • Relax in a slowing activity or practice • Tune out (or in) to music, radio and television or electronic games
35. Pressure valves • Party and socialise • Play with animals or children • Sleep • Phone or text a friend • Take yourself somewhere else
36. Take action
37. Time pressure • Begin the week and day with a plan • Set aside periods of time to do specific types of activity • Educate others to know when you will be available • Be specific and clear about time agreements • You will be interrupted. Take control. • Beware the number of 'monkeys' you are collecting • Put time into what you can change and influence, not what you can't • Be realistic about how long activities will take • Allow regular breaks to recharge your batteries and restore your focus
38. Relationship pressure • Be clear about expectations • Catch difficult situations early • Identify where stories about others may be skewed and how they affect you • Use different approaches for different people
39. Constructive Dialogue • Clearly articulate positions • Describe your perception of the situation and its effects • Keep control over emotionally loaded behaviour • Listen without interrupting • Understand what's behind the story, what's not being said • Focus on what needs to be different and can change • Aim at workable solutions for both sides
40. Change pressure • Communicate like never before • Have your awareness antennae on high alert • Accept that different people move through the change process at different paces • Provide coaching in any areas where individuals may find it difficult to cope • Provide an outlet for negative feelings • Recognise and reward short-term success • Identify best practice that your people will value as representing meaningful success • Make tough choices • Model positive attitudes and behaviour
41. Change your mindset
42. William James "The greatest weapon against stress is our ability to choose one thought over another."
43. The Negative Belief Cycle Negative conformation How do others respond? What is my perception of their feedback? Performance disruption How is my performance affected in the situation? Internal reaction What do I think and feel as I approach certain situations? Negative Belief I can't... I'm no good at... It's difficult for me...
44. The Positive Belief Cycle Positive conformation The positive responses I get from others Performance enhancement How I perform skilfully in the situation Internal reaction What I feel and think positively Positive belief What I know I can do and do well
45. The Core Elements of Resilience PURPOSE Positive Realism Relationships Self-management Self-awareness Determination
46. Recommended reading • "Powering through pressure" by Bruce Hoverd • "Stronger: Develop the Resilience You Need to Succeed" by George Everly Jr., Douglas Strouse, et al. • "Slack: Getting Past Burnout, Busywork, and the Myth of Total Efficiency" by Tom de Marco • "Nonviolent Communication: A Language of Life" by Marshall B. Rosenberg • "Stoicism and the Art of Happiness" by Donald Robertson
47. Thanks for watching!