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While executives spend billions on meditation apps, yoga retreats, and wellness programs, American stress levels continue to skyrocket. A recent study of 90 workplace wellness interventions found most (with one exception detailed below*) had no positive effectand sometimes even made things worse. Our research from last year found that the majority of us tend to stress out more trying to get rid of stress. Talk about a negative spiral! We’re trying harder than ever to eliminate stress, yet workplace anxiety has reached crisis levels, just in time for AI disruption to take people over the edge. Here’s the uncomfortable truth: You’ll never eliminate stress from your career (or your life). But as a stress physiologist, Im here to tell you that’s actually a good thing! My research reveals that our obsession with stress reduction is fundamentally flawed. Instead of fighting stress, the most successful professionals learn to harness it. The only people with zero stress are dead people. Our aim should not be death. Here are five evidence-based strategies to rewire how you can work with stressnot against it. 1. Reframe Your Biology as Your Competitive Edge When your heart pounds before a big presentation, your brain screams “danger.” But that physiological responseincreased heart rate, heightened alertness, elevated energyis identical to excitement. The difference lies in interpretation. A Harvard study found that participants who stated “I am excited” before delivering speeches were rated as significantly more persuasive and confident than those who tried to “stay calm.” The nervous energy remained the same, but performance dramatically improved. Stop telling yourself to calm down. Your stress response is a feature, not a flaw. Start declaring: “This energy is preparing me to excel.” Your stress response isn’t sabotaging youit’s upgrading your operating system. 2. Ask “Is This Actually a Tiger?” Your brain evolved to treat missed emails like charging predators. This served our ancestors well but creates havoc in modern workplaces. When stress hits, pause and ask: “Will this kill me in the next three minutes?” If not, you’re experiencing what I call a “paper tiger”a stressor that feels life-threatening but isn’t. Once you recognize the false alarm, you can redirect that energy productively instead of spiralling into fight-or-flight paralysis. 3. Convert Anxiety into AngerStrategically When facing seemingly insurmountable challenges, excitement might feel impossible. That’s where anger becomes your ally. Studies reveal that anger increases effort toward goals and sparks greater creativity than neutral emotional states. The key is directing anger at the problem, not people. Instead of fuming at difficult colleagues, channel that energy toward solving systemic issues. Transform “This situation is impossible” into “This problem needs fixing, and I’m going to figure out how.” Anger mobilizes action. Point it in the right direction. 4. Think Micro-Goals, Not Mega-Outcomes Stress often stems from feeling overwhelmed by massive objectives. Break intimidating projects into actions so small they’re nearly impossible to fail. When you complete micro-goals, your brain releases dopamine, creating an addictive cycle of progress. When we think we have to leap Everest in a single jump, or relearn our entire job because of AI, our brain naturally defaults to helplessness. But by taking action, even incredibly small moves, we begin to regain agency and feel more in control. This actionable hope ultimately moves us beyond our state of learned helplessness. Ask yourself: “What’s the smallest possible step forward?” Then take it. Winning becomes neurologically addictive (even if the perfect outcome isnt guaranteed). 5. Make It Bigger Than You The most transformative reframe involves expanding your perspective beyond personal gain. When you anchor goals in serving something largeryour team, customers, communitythe fear centers in your brain quiet down. Back to those workplace wellness studies. In the 90 workplace stress interventions, the only thing that consistently improved employee well-being was service to others. When stress serves a purpose beyond yourself, it transforms from burden to fuel. Before your next high-stakes meeting, shift from “How do I not mess this up?” to “How can I serve my audience?” The stress remains, but now it’s powering something meaningful and reminding you that stress is often simply a barometer for how much you care. The Paradox of Peak Performance Olympic athletes don’t break world records during practice. They achieve greatness when pressure peaks. Your biggest professional breakthroughs likely occurred during your most stressful periods, not your calmest. This isn’t about glorifying burnout or toxic work cultures. It’s about recognizing that stress, properly channeled, is the raw material of achievement. The goal isn’t eliminationit’s transformation. Your stress isn’t going anywhere. But your relationship with it can change everything. Stop trying to manage it away. Start using it as the high-octane fuel it was designed to be. The question isn’t whether you’ll face stress today; It’s whether you’ll let it defeat you or springboard you forward.
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E-Commerce
There was a time when leaders followed a linear path. Pick a lane, specialize, climb the ladder, and stay the course for decades. But that norm is unraveling. Global complexity demands leaders who are adaptive, integrative, and, above all, multifaceted. These individuals dont fit neatly into one category; they may be artists and scientists, coaches and corporate strategists, or data analysts and storytellers. And far from being a liability, these dualities are now an asset. To be successful in todays world, leaders need to connect across ideas, industries, and cultures. To be able to do that skillfully, you must play in more than one arena. Its no longer just about what you do during your nine-to-five. Its the sum of your experiences and the unique value you bring to the world. This requires you to embrace your full complexity, not just for personal growth, but also as a competitive edge. The future of leadership belongs to those who can hold nuance, navigate change, and bring their whole selves to the table. Less specializing, more integrating The old story was: Pick a lane and stay in it. Specialization was in favor. But now, as AI handles narrow expertise, whats left for us? The answer lies in focusing on integration and expression. The leaders who thrive now are those who connect dots across disciplines, sectors, and identities. They see what others miss because they live in more than one world. Former PepsiCo CEO Indra Nooyi didnt follow a linear path. She studied physics, chemistry, and math. She also played in a band and excelled at cricket. Then she eventually went on to pursue design thinking and innovation at Yale. Her leadership wasnt just data-driven; it was holistic. She could speak to Wall Street and public health advocates with equal ease. And under her leadership, PepsiCos revenue nearly doubled, rising from $35 billion to over $63 billion. The best leaders integrate diverse skills and experiences to drive innovation and connect more authentically with their teams. This integration not only broadens perspective but also deepens trust, fosters creativity, and empowers teams to operate with greater empathy and cohesion. Navigating change with agility Todays leaders are not only leading through change; they are the change. They embody fluidity, resilience, and the ability to evolve across multiple life chapters. In his book Range, journalist David Epstein writes: Approach your own personal voyage and projects like Michelangelo approached a block of marble, willing to learn and adjust as you go, and even to abandon a previous goal and change directions entirely should the need arise. After a few years of working in finance, Shuo Zhai followed his passion for architecture and pursued his master’s degree at Yale. He worked with Frank Gehry at Gehry Partnersand in parallel, he sings with the Grammy Award-winning Los Angeles Master Chorale, and works as a world-class chamber music pianist. He believes that his multidisciplinary approach enables better problem-solving, and deeper empathy and understanding, ultimately leading to more effective architecture and music. The ability to pivot and grow isnt built in one role: Its built across roles. Leaders who draw from multiple domains are more resilient and curious during transitions. In his own journey, Tony Martignetti transitioned from a finance and strategy executive in the life sciences industry to a leadership development facilitator and experience designer. Along the way, he reconnected with his identity as an artistbringing creativity, storytelling, and visual thinking into his work with leaders. That blend of analytical precision and artistic intuition has allowed him to help others navigate ambiguity, reimagine their narratives, and unlock new dimensions of their leadership. Where have you built resilience in one part of your life that could serve you in another? Why multifaceted leadership matters Jessica Wan, spent nearly two decades as a marketing and strategy executive at organizations such as Apple, San Francisco Opera, Smule, and Magoosh. Eventually, she transitioned into a leadership coach and venture partner. But shes continually applied learnings from her lifelong artistic identity as a musician and singer to leadership challenges. This rare blend of analytical acumen and creative sensibility enables her to help leaders navigate change and transform chaos into clarity. Jessica launched her podcast to spotlight individuals who embody this multidimensional path: a neuroscientist and an Indian classical dancer, an entomologist and a journalist, and a business professor and a Broadway investor. Their message? You dont have to shrink to fit in. When a young person says, I want to be an astronaut and a ballerina, we want to be able to say: Yes, you can. How to embrace being a multifaceted leader Leaders arent just executives. They are also musicians, poets, caregivers, podcast hosts, and community volunteers. And denying those dimensions leads to fragmentation and fatigue. Instead of hiding those parts, successful leaders integrate themand invite them into the room. We need to recognize the value of integrating these roles into our leadership approach. But before we can do so, we must first explore them. Heres a quick exercise to get you started: What is a role outside your professional life that matters deeply to you? What leadership traits have you developed from that role? How could you apply those traits to a current work challenge? This isnt just about driving career success; it is about living a more fulfilling life. Its about giving yourself and others permission to fully live into your potential. We believe this is the future of leadership: bold, complex, curious, and fully alive. For us, bringing our artistic backgrounds into the leadership space has profoundly shaped our work in the business world. The arts invite presence, reflection, and imaginationthree qualities that help leaders break free from rigid thinking and connect with the deeper purpose behind their work. Our invitation: Audit the dimensions of your identity, find the intersections, and show up fullynot just for your team, but for yourself. You dont have to choose between your roles. The world needs all of you.
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E-Commerce
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is alerting the public via its recall website to be on the lookout for bags of frozen vegetables, due to possible contamination from Listeria. New York-based Endico Potatoes is voluntarily recalling peas and carrots and mixed vegetables sold between July 18 and August 4 in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Maryland, Florida, and Washington, D.C. The company ceased distribution of the product after sampling by the state of Pennsylvania revealed the presence of the bacteria. No illnesses have been reported to date, and the FDA and Endico are continuing to investigate the cause. What is Listeria and what are the symptoms? Listeria monocytogenes is a type of disease-causing bacteria that is generally transmitted when food is harvested, processed, prepared, packed, transported, or stored in manufacturing or production environments contaminated with the bacteria, according to the FDA. Infection can lead to severe symptoms such as fever, nausea, abdominal pain, and diarrhea, poses a particular risk to vulnerable populations, including pregnant women, the elderly, and those with weakened immune systems. In pregnant women, it can cause miscarriages and stillbirths. What is the product information for the recall? The product was packed in frozen 2.5-lb clear plastic bags under the Endico label. Details for the affected products are as follows: “PEAS AND CARROTS”: Lot number: 110625 Production date: June 11, 2025 Use by date: June 10, 2027 “MIXED VEGETABLES”: Lot number: 170625 Production date: June 17, 2025 Use by date: June 16, 2027 The lot codes are printed on the side of the bag. What if I have these products in my freezer? Consumers who have purchased Endico brand peas and carrots or mixed vegetables with these lot codes are urged to not consume the products and to return them to the place of purchase for a full refund. Consumers with questions may contact the company by phone at 1-800-431-1398.
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E-Commerce
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