Think stress is your enemy? Think again.
You’re sitting at your desk, heart pounding before a big presentation. Your palms are sweaty, your mind is racing, and you feel that familiar surge of energy coursing through your body. Your first instinct might be to label this as “bad stress” and try to eliminate it.
But what if I told you that this feeling might be exactly what you need to perform at your best?
Most of us equate all stress with negative experiences, but eustress is actually positive stress that can promote health, motivation, and productivity. The problem isn’t stress itself. The problem is that we’ve been taught to fear it.
What makes stress good for you
Eustress produces positive feelings of excitement, fulfillment, meaning, satisfaction, and well-being. Unlike the overwhelming feeling of distress, good stress makes you feel confident and stimulated by the challenge you’re facing.
Here’s the key difference:
Good stress (eustress): Good stress is the anticipation of going on holiday and feeling excited about what you need to do to prepare for it. It’s short-term, inspiring, and enhances your performance.
Bad stress (distress): Bad stress is making a pre-holiday to-do list and feeling panicked and overwhelmed by everything on it. It leaves you feeling depleted and anxious.
The situation might be identical. The difference is how your brain interprets what’s happening.
The surprising benefits of good stress
Stress is an essential part of life. Without stress we die inside and leave this world at 25, before we’re eventually buried at 75 and have a funeral for our remains. Most of us don’t have too much stress. No. We don’t have enough. Healthy stress is a source of growth. Stress is a component of high performance.
Here’s what good stress actually does for you:
It boosts your performance
According to Yerkes-Dodson law, stress can improve performance–at least, up to a certain point. That surge of adrenaline you feel before a challenge isn’t working against you. It’s preparing your body and mind to perform at their peak.
Eustress encourages us to stretch our limits and achieve our goals. It’s that extra push we need to study for an exam, train for a marathon, or complete a challenging work project.
It strengthens your resilience
Eustress can build mental resilience, better equipping us to handle future stress. Each time you successfully navigate a challenging situation, you’re building evidence that you can handle difficult things.
When you face a stressful situation, it can help you learn more about yourself, your skills, and your limits. As you learn more about what you are capable of, you’re more likely to feel able to handle such situations in the future.
It improves your health
While bad stress hurts your immune system, some research indicates that short-term stressors can help improve your body’s ability to deal with illness and injury.
Exercise, for example, can induce eustress that improves health by challenging and strengthening the heart and lungs. It may also reduce the risk of certain mental health conditions and even help a person live longer.
It enhances creativity and focus
The best thing about eustress is the contribution it makes towards creativity and cognitive function. Since it motivates a person to do better, it triggers the parts of the brain responsible for creativity, ensuring that you are more capable of coming up with innovations that contribute to your productivity.
How to tell if your stress is working for you
The difference between good and bad stress often comes down to one simple question: Does this particular stressor feel like a threat to your health or happiness at this current moment or is it a challenge to overcome for the better?
Signs you’re experiencing good stress:
- You feel energized rather than drained
- The challenge feels manageable
- You have a sense of excitement or anticipation
- You feel confident in your ability to handle the situation
- The stress is temporary and has a clear endpoint
Signs your stress has turned harmful:
- You feel overwhelmed or out of control
- The pressure feels endless with no clear resolution
- You’re experiencing physical symptoms like headaches or sleep problems
- You’re avoiding the situation rather than engaging with it
How to transform bad stress into good stress
Stress and how it effects you really depends on your mindset. For example, lets say you have a financial crisis and can either completely freak out, letting it overwhelm you or you can use that to motivate you to make a change for the better and increase your income.
Here are three ways to shift your stress from harmful to helpful:
1. Reframe challenges as opportunities
Research shows that when an event is perceived as a “threat,” people respond to it differently than if it’s seen as a “challenge.” Threats tend to elicit a greater stress response and create greater levels of anxiety, while challenges can be exciting and even enjoyable to overcome.
Instead of thinking “This presentation could ruin my career,” try “This presentation is a chance to showcase my expertise.”
2. Focus on what you can control
Stress isn’t bad. It causes us to focus, become determined, and test our mettle. It’s when stress crosses over into distress that we lose sight of our important long-term goals and instead look for what will relieve us now.
Good stress keeps you focused on solutions. Bad stress makes you focus on problems you can’t solve.
3. Build your stress tolerance gradually
Develop tolerance to stress by deliberately exposing yourself to manageable challenges. A simple way to do this is to participate in activities that are challenging but feel doable and have a clear route forward.
The bottom line
Eustress helps us stay motivated, work toward goals, and feel good about life. The goal isn’t to eliminate stress from your life. It’s to transform your relationship with it.
The next time you feel that familiar surge of stress, pause and ask yourself: “Is this challenge pushing me to grow, or is it overwhelming me?” If it’s the former, lean into it. That stress might be exactly what you need to reach your full potential.
Remember: Feel the pain and you’ll experience a gain. The discomfort you’re feeling isn’t a sign something’s wrong. It might be a sign that something’s about to go very right.
