they’ll want to avoid them. After
all, humans are hardwired to avoid
distress. It is easy to understand
why pressure is inherently
threatening when you consider
that in humankind’s early “pressure
moments,” failure to perform
could be fatal: If you didn’t make
the leap from one mountain ledge
to another, there was no second
chance. The notion of “succeed or
perish” was not far-fetched.
In today’s world, most pressure
moments won’t have life-or-death
consequences. Furthermore, the
emotional responses that helped
our ancestors stay alive (e.g., fear
and anxiety) can actually deter your
client’s ability to perform effectively
and achieve her goals.
Often, individuals threatened
by pressure will make excellent
progress toward their goals, until
the moment in which they must
“deliver the goods,” and take the
step that will yield a true change
(e.g., confronting a teammate,
quitting a job, filing articles of
incorporation for a new business).
Perhaps you’ve had a client say, “I
know what I have to do; I just have to
do it.” This roadblock may represent
an attempt to sidestep pressure
rather than meeting it head on. As a
coach, you can support your client in
reframing action as an opportunity
or challenge, thereby increasing the
likelihood that she’ll successfully
move forward and achieve her goals.
22
Coaching World
Understanding Pressure
Moments
Pressure moments are situations
where individuals perceive that
something at stake is dependent
on their performance. Pressure
moments typically share three
characteristics. Recognizing and
understanding these characteristics
can help you and your client
recognize pressure moments and
respond accordingly.
Pressure moments are associated
with situations your client perceives
as very important: The higher the
perceived importance, the greater
pressure your client is likely to feel.
The more (or more urgently) your
client brings up a particular situation
during your coaching conversations,
the more likely it is that she’s
assigned a high level of importance
to it.
Pressure moments are also
associated with situations where
there’s an element of uncertainty
about achieving desired outcomes.
Finally, pressure moments are
associated with those situations
where a client feels that the burden
of responsibility for the outcome is
hers alone—whether or not this is in
fact true. Recognizing these common
denominators of a pressure moment
and educating your client about them
can lead to powerful new insights
about why and how she experiences
pressure in a particular way, and
what she can do to address the
experience proactively.
Relief Valves
Earlier, I used the example of
shortstop Derek Jeter, whose
lifetime and playoff batting averages
demonstrated his consistency in the
face of pressure. However, Jeter was
an exception rather than a rule. The
reality is that many individuals do
choke under pressure and perform
below their average capacity. One
reason for this is the development or
“worry cognitions,” or thoughts that
spur immense self-consciousness
(e.g., “How am I doing? What is
my supervisor thinking? What
will happen if he doesn’t agree
with me?”). These thoughts can
take an individual off-course by
monopolizing working memory
space and causing him to forget
crucial information or lose a train of
thought. Additionally, the distressing
feelings pressure generates, such
Invite your clients to
engage in creative
brainstorming to
identify other tactics
and strategies they can
use to thrive in (rather
than succumb to)
pressure moments.
as anxiety, fear of failure, stress and
embarrassment, can disrupt every
aspect of performance.
If your client can minimize these
distressful feelings and rid himself
of distracting worry cognitions, it’s
more likely that he’ll be able to stay
focused and increase his chances
for success not only in the pressure
moment, but every day.
There are dozens of evidence -based
strategies that can help individuals
reduce distressful feelings associated
with pressure moments, stay focused
and guide their behavior toward a
successful outcome.
Sian Beilock, a professor in The
University of Chicago’s department
و