PRESSURE MAKED DIAMOND
When carbon is subjected to an immense amount of pressure and heat, diamonds are created. This is common knowledge, but it can also be an analogy about tackling pressure thatcan be extended to people—those who shine turn out that way because they underwent and overcame pressure. Since pressure is an inevitable problem, we have to come up with ways to keep it from affecting us and help us address it straightforwardly. This is the gist of an article in Prize Size by Ryan Salomon entitled “Pressure Makes Diamonds.”1
In Salomon’s article, he enumerates some ways in handling pressure. Some of the tips include identifying the source of pressure and your reaction to it, remaining calm bycreating a mantra to repeat to yourself in times of stress and by taking deep breaths, looking for solutions to the aspects of the problem that can be controlled, and lastly, trying mindful meditation to ease the anxiety.As a school leader, the technique that I find most applicable is identifying the source of the pressure and my response to it and looking for solutions to the things that can be solved.
As a school head, I am aware that pressure comes hand-in-hand with this highlydemanding job. Successfully dealing with stressis essential to being an efficient school head, but sometimes issues can pile up and become too overwhelming to handle.When confronted with big problems,some peoplemight avoid it or procrastinate until it becomes hard to handle.This is not an option for educators and school heads; we have to tackle issues face-to-face.This is where I can apply the techniques that I read about in Salomon’s article, for they can help in managing not only stress, but the work itself.
These techniques can be applied especially when planning about budgets and events for the school, since it can get overwhelming.I can manage stress in three ways. First, I will do as the article says and point out what stresses me and how I react to it. This will help me calm down and try to view the issue in an objective manner. I will use what I found out in coming up with a strategy to address the issue. This leads to the second step: solving the things that can be solved. To apply this step,I will make a to-do list of the things that I can address concretely, and I will work on them. Finally, I will try to reflect on things and clear my mind before tackling these issues again.
Overall, believe that the main takeaway from this reflection is that one should not run from and get scared of stress, since it is an inevitable part of professional life. What we can do instead is to tackle it head-on and learn how to manage issues intelligently and efficiently. Stress and pressure should not be avoided. They help add to the wisdom that only experience can give. Diamonds, after all, are a product of pressure.
Source: Salomon, Ryan. “Pressure Makes Diamonds.” Prize Size. Retrieved from http:/ /prizesize.com/no-pressure-no-diamonds