The skyrocketing rise work-related stress in recent years has most notably affected CEOs and senior leadership teams. Project deadlines, team management and turnover targets are a small selection of issues to be dealt with. Growing expectations on diversity, equity and inclusion policies evolve quickly and can become overwhelming to sustain. 46% of CEOs in Australia have admitted to feeling personally responsible for ESG failures within their organisation. The weight of such pivotal adjustments can contribute to executive or work stress.

The rise in remote work and fluid office hours has brought a lot of attention to ‘work-life’ balance initiatives. This is a key attraction element considered by candidates when accepting a new position. And, while shepherding the ‘work-life’ balance for teams, CEOs often live a different reality to that which they advocate.

Being the most stressed and overworked person in the room should never be strived for. Work related stress can cause low energy and motivation as well as frequent illnesses, insomnia, and a loss of desire for human connection.

Since executive leaders can’t eliminate the stressful tasks that comprise their roles, stress-management initiatives may assist in easing the burden of such. We have compiled a selection of tips to relieve symptoms of executive search:

1.    Identify your stress triggers.

What usually sets your stress to overdrive? Identifying your triggers will allow you to be mindful of the scenarios in which you should get outside to cool off or reset.

2.    Have boundaries.

Having on/off boundaries is essential. Work should not be a 24/7 commitment. Boundaries between family and work time should be set early, so your team understands when to avoid contacting you.

3.    Embed healthy habits.

Exercise and good sleep should be key additions to your schedule. The body cannot function without good sleep. Avoiding rest to complete tasks will negatively affect productivity in the days following. How can you perform best when suffering from exhaustion?

4.    Speak to those around you.

Friends, family, and even colleagues are great people to turn to when you feel stressed at work. Talking through how your workload is making you feel will be a weight off your shoulders and could even benefit your team too.

5.    Make stress your friend.

Stress can often result from the fear of fear itself. However, if you learn to understand fear and its triggers, you may be able to harness the power of it. Kelly McGonigal has an excellent TED Talk in which she discusses the power of harnessing stress for good: You can view it here. McGonigal reveals that we can build resilience and boost oxytocin levels in our body when we make stress our friend.

The first step to overcoming stress at work is to identify the stimuli. It’s no secret that these will be plenty for an executive or CEO. However, it has never been more important for leaders to set a good example in terms of their stress management. Developing and interpreting skills such as those mentioned should aid in enhancing senior leadership capabilities and success.

At North Search, we understand how to get the best out of executive-level individuals. If you are interested to discover how we may be best placed to source your organisations next key-player, get in touch.