Three Things: Anxiety, Panic Attacks and Your Business

Three Things I Learned In Saas, Sports, Tech and Live Events Starting a growth business is high pressure. You or someone on your team will be hit with life changing anxiety the way I was in 08. It feasts on high performers using their drive against them. Six things I learned through recovery and how it can help your business. 1. Get the right help. I got the wrong help. 3x. The wrong people lean on drugs first, quick fixes and unproven theories. They don't work. Find an expert in ACT and trust nobody offering a quick fix 2. Stop thinking we're unique or different. We are but not nearly as much as we think. Recovery and a normal life is very doable, no matter how far away they can seem. 3. Be patient. It takes time to understand and move forward. 4. Drugs are a last and final resort. The vast majority of us can recover successfully without them. They were pressed on my by everyone first thing. It wasn't till I chucked them that i got a lot better. 5. Know it isn't permanent. The hardest part, for me, was finding stories of those whose lives panic and anxiety didn't change. We exist. 6. Talk about it openly. Life altering anxiety is so much more common than most think. I can't count how many staff, peers and friends have come to me feeling defeated by it. And it's often the high performers. If you don't have any experience with it personally but you are a leader, learn about it. It will help your business and save you money. During my incessant drive to find a "cure," a common mistake by many, I read just about every book out there. Seriously, I read like 50 books on anxiety and panic attacks. The top three I would recommend: 1. The Panic Attacks Workbook by Dave Carbonell. This book changed my life more than anything short of the Bible. He has a lot of content on his website www.anxietycoach.com 2. The Happiness Trap by Russ Harris. His videos, found here, are simple and do a terrific job of helping explain why people are wired the way they are 3. Emotional Agility by Susan David, PhD