Good vs. Bad Stress: What Leaders Need to Know
As busy middle leaders, we’re no strangers to feeling stressed. From juggling numerous responsibilities to navigating complex organisational challenges, stress is simply part of the job description.
However, it’s crucial that we understand the important distinction between good stress and bad stress.
The positive side of stress is what’s known as “eustress.” This is the manageable, motivating type of stress that pushes us to rise to new challenges and perform at our best. Maybe you have an important presentation coming up, and the nervous energy you feel gives you an extra boost of focus and determination. Or perhaps you’re working towards a major goal for your team or department, and the stress of the deadline spurs you on to put in your greatest effort.
Eustress is healthy and natural. It keeps us on our toes, drives us to grow and improve, and allows us to achieve things we may not have thought possible. As middle leaders, we need a degree of eustress to stay engaged, inspired, and operating at a high level.
The concerning type of stress, on the other hand, is what we refer to as bad stress, or “distress.” This is the overwhelming, unmanageable kind of stress that can take a serious toll on our mental and physical well-being. Perhaps you’re dealing with a major organisational change, a difficult staffing issue, or simply too many competing priorities and not enough time. This distress can manifest as exhaustion, irritability, poor sleep, and even physical health problems.
Distress is the type of stress we want to minimise as much as possible. It drains our energy, diminishes our productivity, and makes it challenging to show up as the strong, resilient leaders our teams need.
So how can we tell the difference between eustress and distress? Eustress often comes with a sense of excitement or challenge, while distress just feels heavy and burdensome. Eustress motivates us, while distress depletes us.
Good Stress (Eustress) Checklist
- Provides a sense of excitement or challenge
- Motivates you to put in my best effort
- Pushes you to grow, improve, or achieve more
- Leaves you feeling energised and accomplished
Bad Stress (Distress) Checklist
- Feels heavy, overwhelming, or draining
- Makes it difficult to focus or be productive
- Negatively impacts your mental or physical health
- Causes you to feel anxious, irritable, or exhausted
The key is to be mindful of when we’re experiencing eustress, and lean into it. But when we start to feel the weight of distress, that’s our cue to take proactive steps to manage that stress in a healthy way – through self-care, delegation, boundary-setting, or seeking support from our peers and superiors.
Remember, a certain level of stress is normal and even beneficial for us as middle leaders. But too much bad stress can hinder our performance, our well-being, and our ability to effectively lead our teams.
By understanding the difference between good and bad stress, we can strive to cultivate the positive kind that helps us grow, while keeping the negative kind at bay.
